Some Very Shules Moments
by 123ficwriter321
Summary: One-shots of Shules for those moments when you just need a pick-me-up :)
1. Chapter 1

**So I decided to try a couple of Shules One-Shots. I'm not sure how often I'll post or anything, probably just as I get the whim. However, if you like this, you should read my other story "The Somewhat Psychic Adventures of Spencer 'Kate' Jones"!**

**Anyway, I got the idea for this when my dorm lost power this morning. It's post-Yin but pre-dating.**

Detective Juliet O'Hara was sidling around the back of a warehouse, getting ready to bust in the door when she saw a figure silhouetted under the streetlight. "Shawn, I told you to stay in the car!"

"Oh, come on Jules. When have I ever stayed in the car? We both know that you say 'Stay in the car Shawn' and I hear 'Wait five minutes then follow me you Greek god of great hair'!"

She had to stifle a laugh, he was funny, always funny and usually quite useful. She had known he wouldn't stay in the car, and part of her-not the part willing to admit it to him-but part of her was glad he was there. "Fine, but stay quiet and behind me, no wandering off."

He nodded vigorously, then offered her his wrist. "I'm sensing your watch is dead."

She looked down, he was right, her watch was frozen on 4:15 when she knew it was nearly 6:00. "Just nod when it's 6:01-you synced with Lassiter?"

"Yep, I set myself to Lassie time in the car. 30 seconds."

He smiled at her, then looked at the door. She did too, she had no idea how she was going to kick it down. Shooting the lock would work, but it would give away her position faster than just taking out the door. Suddenly, Shawn crouched down by the lock-he was going to pick it. Had he read her mind? She always wondered about that, sometimes it seemed like he could, but other times...

"Got it." He whispered. "After you Detective."

He quietly opened the door and she stormed in, gun drawn and yelled "SBPD, put your hands in the air!" But the sound of her voice died instantly. Their intel had been wrong, this wasn't an open warehouse, there were walls everywhere-like those used in convention halls to make one large room into two smaller ones. She was supposed to be able to see Carlton, see everything, but all she saw was walls.

"It's a maze." Shawn said quietly from behind her. "The cheese is in the middle. Jules let's go!"

He started down the florescent lit hall but she grabbed his arm. "Behind me, Shawn." They started walking, Shawn's hand was to his temple, so he must have been sensing something. She wasn't totally sure how his psychic powers worked, but she followed his directions through the maze. They had to be getting close to the center, she could feel it. "Shawn, I don't like this. I don't like being a mouse."

"It's okay Jules, I'm here for you, nothing's going to happen. I won't let you out of my sight. Make this left and we'll be in the middle."

She was steeled by his words, he was right, she could get through this, she wasn't alone, Shawn was there to save her this time. She turned and saw him sitting there, her suspect, 'The Mousetrap Killer' they were calling him. "SBPD, Hands in the air!" She yelled again, hoping Lassiter was close by now.

He complied, slowly raising his hands up when suddenly everything went dark. And then he laughed. He must have had a speaker system because the laugh was terribly loud and everywhere at once. She couldn't see, she couldn't hear, and she was terrified. The victims of this man had been horribly mutilated, and she was next. It was like Yin all over again and she fought to keep composure, gun still drawn she was spinning wildly to try and see anything.

Out of nowhere she felt somebody's arms wrap around her from behind. She fought against the grip but he was too strong. Then she heard it over that terrible, evil laugh. "Jules, it's me, it's Shawn, I got you. I'm here for you." She stopped fighting and relaxed in his arms. She still couldn't see. Still couldn't hear, but she was calm. Shawn was there, and if anyone was going to keep her safe, it would be him.

Suddenly, the lights were back on and the laughter stopped. They were alone, TMK was gone. She lowered her weapon and turned to face Shawn, still with his arms around her. His eyes, full of concern, had a golden sunburst around the pupil and varying shades of green around that.

"Jules, you okay?"

"Shawn, I-I-" He definitely couldn't read her thoughts, because if he could he'd be kissing her right now. "Thank you, for being there, I-"

"I told you I would be. I'm always there for you Jules."

She nodded and hugged him, wishing she had the courage to say what she wanted to when she heard Lassie yell "I got him!"

* * *

It had been a week since they caught The Mousetrap Killer. A week since she'd seen Shawn, and she was dying a little bit. Typically he flitted around the office, gloating or nosing for another case, but she hadn't seen him once the entire week. Part of her was glad, that moment in the center of the maze she almost gave in to what she'd been fighting all these years, maybe she wasn't strong enough to see him yet. She couldn't tell him how she felt-what if he shot her down again? Or what if he didn't and they dated for a while and broke up, things would be awful? Or what if they never broke up, it was hard enough loving him, worrying about him, what if they had kids one day?

These questions and a million more raced through Juliet's head as she sat on the couch eating popcorn and watching a chick-flick. There was a typical summer storm booming in the background that she hadn't really even noticed until a particularly loud boom preceded her power going out.

"Crap." She said as she stood up and began shuffling around to find a candle. It wasn't that she was scared of the dark, but ever since Yin and now TMK she preferred having the option of leaving all the lights on. She found a candle, but the matchbook was empty so she began shuffling back toward the kitchen to find another one when she heard a knock on the door. She quietly put the candle down and picked up her gun as she silently approached the door. The knocking had turned to a pounding and she really wished the power was back on.

"Jules, it's me, don't shoot!"

She lowered her gun and opened the door. There stood Shawn in his boxers and a tee shirt holding three long, lit candles between his fingers like Wolverine's claws. "How did you know I had my gun?"

"Because I know you. If I were going to Lassie's house I'd be wearing a bullet-proof vest, but you typically ask before you shoot." He walked into her apartment, threw a backpack on her couch and began rifling through it. He quickly pulled out three candle holders and set them up on her table, putting the candles in one at a time.

"Shawn, what are you doing here?" She wasn't sure why that wasn't her first question-but she suspected it was because she was glad he came.

"I told you I'd always be there for you. Once the power went out and I realized it wasn't just me, I grabbed supplies and raced over here. However, I feel like I should've waited to have the candles in holders before I lit them, did you know hot wax kind of burns?"

She walked over to him, even in the flickering light of the candles she could see blisters forming. "Oh Shawn! You're actually burned!" She grabbed his hand and the icewater she had on the table and stuck his fingers in the glass, causing some of the water to spill out. "Oops, sorry if some of that landed on you." She looked up at him and was startled his expression. It wasn't cocky or humorous, but serious.

"Juliet, you're beautiful. And I'm sorry if that seems random, but here, in the candlelight-not that you're only beautiful in candlelight because you're beautiful all the time-but right now, I just can't not say it anymore. Do you know why I haven't been by the station all week? It's because of you. Because I wanted to kiss you so bad in the middle of that mousetrap, but I was scared. Scared you'd think it was a mistake or that I'd be taking advantage of the trauma you went through with Yin. But then the power went out and I needed to come, because even if you were okay I promised I would always be there for you and I couldn't take that chance. I love you Juliet, I think I have since we met at the diner, definitely since very close talking, and even for that year between Yang and Yin. It's always been you and I'm done fighting it."

She looked at him for a second before dropping the water glass and popping on her toes to kiss him. A proper kiss and instantly she couldn't think of why she had ever fought it. Kissing him was like coming alive and coming home at the same time. "I love you too Shawn." She whispered as they broke , in the candlelight, all of her dreams came true.

* * *

**So, what did you think? Good? Bad? Read and Review and I might write more! {#}**


	2. Chapter 2: Study Session

**So, due to power-outages I ended up studying for five hours in a McDonald's yesterday...which gave me an idea for another One-Shot! I think you'll figure out when this one takes place... Also, I should probably start giving these titles, so how 'bout:**

The Study Session

"Jules! Come on, I've never studied for anything!" Shawn sat at the kitchen table with books and pamphlets scattered everywhere and a deep desire to be doing anything but this.

"You're studying for this Shawn, it's important!"

"Fine...I guess I could skim through these." Shawn let out as loud a sigh as he could manage and flipped open the cover of the book directly in front of him.

"I'm going to start vacuuming, but you better read, I'll know if you haven't!" Juliet walked toward the closet and pulled out their newest appliance, a Dyson vacuum cleaner. It was the only way she had a chance of Shawn doing vacuuming, he loved the big yellow ball...

"How?" He called from the other room.

"You're not the only fake-psychic around Mr. Spencer, I can 'sense' it!" Finding out Shawn was a fake had been difficult all those years ago, but now it was basically just a running joke. Anytime one of them guessed the ending to a movie, or finished the other's sentence it was because of a 'psychic vision' of some sort. She plugged in the vacuum and started maneuvering it around the living room floor. After several minutes, she heard her husband yell "I'm running to the store!" in a panicked voice-he _had_ been reading.

* * *

After a very stressful hour or reading and purchasing, Shawn unlocked the front door, burst in, dropped his bags, and grabbed the vacuum from his wife. "You should be resting. Or doing water aerobics maybe. Or singing! We should sing together!"

Juliet just laughed, "Shawn, I wanted you to read those books so you'd be prepared, not so you'd-"

"Prepared! I am! I mean we will be now. I bought those outlet cover things, and some foam to put on corners, and baby gates, and child safety locks for all the cabinets and drawers. I was going to buy a crib, but I figured you'd want to be there for that, but I got a couple brands that haven't had to recall cribs for killing babies. Jules-babies can get hurt so many different ways!"

She switched off the vacuum and pulled Shawn into a hug. She wasn't even showing yet, but he was still so cautious to not squeeze her tight. "Shawn, you're going to be an amazing father."

"But what if I'm not? What if I play too rough with him or her, or I get distracted and they get hurt, or-"

"Do you love me?" She asked, cutting of his ramble.

"Yes, so very much."

"Do you love the baby?"

"Yes, of course, but-"

"No buts Shawn. I know you, I love you, you're ready-or you will be in six months when I'm due. A little bit of fear is good, but too much is crippling, so for right now just focus on fulfilling my cravings, ok?" She looked deep into his hazel eyes, hoping he was having a 'psychic vision' right now.

"Of course, anything my dear." Studying could wait, he leaned in and kissed her passionately. Shawn was astounded, he was in his own house, kissing his wife who was carrying his baby. Maybe growing up wasn't such a bad thing.

* * *

**So, I don't know if I like it quite as much as the first, but it's still fun to write :) Let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I got an unexpected free hour so I figured I'd do a quick-write one-shot! This is pre-dating, shortly after Bounty Hunters, that's all you get. Also I couldn't think of a title, so...suggest some and the one I like best will probably get put on! Also, if you have ideas for one shots you'd like to see, let me know! Review or PM, either way. :)**

Juliet heard a knock on her door. Or she thought she did, it may have just been in her dream...

No, there it was again, and she was definitely awake now. It was soft but rapid, with a sense of urgency to it. Her neighbors knew she was a cop, but they generally didn't come knocking on her door in the middle of the night. She looked at her clock, blinking rapidly to clear the sleep from her eyes. "2:26 am, you've got to be kidding me..." She'd have to be up in three hours for the morning shift, but there was the knock again. Frustrated and a bit confused, she pushed off the covers-scaring her cat D'artangnan in the process-and dragged herself to the door.

She thought about grabbing her gun, but opted to look through the peephole first, and as she did she was surprised by who's distorted face she saw on the other side. "Shawn?" She said sleepily as she undid the deadbolt and chain. "What are you doing here?" She opened the door to reveal the psychic detective in a t-shirt and boxers with his hair remarkably unstyled.

"Jules! You're alive-I mean up..." He then looked her over and she became painfully aware of the fact that she only wore a tank top and lounge shorts/women's boxers to bed. "And in your pj's. I'm sorry, I should go." And with that he turned and started walking away, shaking his head.

"Shawn, wait! What do you mean 'you're alive', why are you here?" She whispered loudly down the hall. It was enough to bring him back though.

"I had a dream, it was awful and I knew it was a dream, but I just...I had to make sure you were okay. I know, it was stupid but-"

She was touched, he cared enough to drive to her house in the middle of the night to see if she was okay. "You wanna come in and talk about it?" She wasn't sure why she was inviting him in, at two in the morning, while they were both barely dressed, but it seemed wrong to make him drive all the way back. He shook his head and she opened the door wider to let him in. "Can I get you anything, coffee, tea, hot cocoa, I may have pineapple somewhere.

He laughed, "I'm fine, if you want anything I'll take some too I guess. You have a great place Jules, and is this your kitty? He's so cute!"

She was surprised, for two reasons. A. Whatever dream Shawn had must have been pretty bad for him to turn down pineapple, and B. D'art never came out for strangers. "I'm just going to have water. And that's D'art, I'm surprised he's out." Shawn bent down and scooped up her normally skittish kitty, "...and letting you hold him." She grabbed two glasses and filled them with water from the pitcher. "So tell me about this dream." She walked over and sat by him on the couch, careful to keep enough distance between them, and sat the glasses on coasters.

"I don't know Jules. I was dreaming I was SpongeBob living in my pineapple home when it suddenly changed. We were working a case, some sicko had beaten his little sister and we had finally caught up with the creep. Except I had gone in first and gotten caught, you came in to save me and..." He looked down, still stroking D'art who was purring loudly. "He hit you Jules, with an axe. There was blood and I-I tried to get to you but I couldn't, he had tied me to a pole or something. I pulled and screamed but it was useless, you were lying there-I..."

She had never seen him this...scared? Distraught? She couldn't think of a fitting word, but she was touched. She scooted towards him slightly and joined his stroking of the cat, allowing her arm to lay on his while she scratched beneath D'art's ear. "I'm so sorry, Shawn. But I'm okay, see?"

"I know, I know it was stupid to come, but...it was so real..." He looked deep into her eyes with his dark hazel ones and she had to stand up to keep from leaning in and kissing him.

"Why don't you stay here tonight?" Why was she saying that? She needed him to go, to leave so she wouldn't make a mistake. "On the couch, that is. It's late and..."

"Are you sure? I don't want..."

She wasn't sure, or her brain wasn't, but her mouth was already speaking, "Yeah, of course. I'll go get you blankets."

* * *

Six hours later she was going through paperwork on her desk when she gasped. A case, a couple months old but given up on. A girl had been brutally beaten, they had suspected the brother but couldn't find any hard evidence. She quickly pulled out her phone and pressed 4 on the speed-dial. "Shawn, get down here quick. I don't think that was a dream last night, I think it was a vision!"

* * *

They had worked fervently through the day and actually gotten a lead. Lassiter was circling the perimeter with Gus and Juliet and Shawn were getting ready to enter the store the brother worked at. It was a little after 10 and the store was closed. "Remember Shawn, I go in first and you stay behind me, got it?"

"No problem Jules, just...be careful. And duck if you see any axes!"

She nodded, gun drawn, and burst through the door. She didn't see the kid, just the empty store, and she cautiously entered, turning on the light switch as she got through the door. "Does any of this look familiar?"

"Not really, I didn't get many details...mostly just darkness." He whispered, then he suddenly stopped. "Jules, 3'o'clock!"

She spun and saw him. Their suspect. 18 years old but he looked 50, she could tell he hadn't been taking care of himself and he had a pistol trained on her. "SPBD, put down your weapon and put your hands in the air!" She yelled, almost out of instinct.

"I didn't mean to do it. She just made me...she was so annoying." It was more of a growl than anything else.

"Hands in the air!"

"Dude, don't do this." Shawn said as he slowly approached the suspect, hands in the surrendered position. "Listen to me, just come with us, it's way better that way. You don't have to do this."

"Shut up, get back!" The kid yelled, wildly pointing his gun between Shawn and her.

"Shawn, what are you doing?"

"Get back! I'm warning you! I'll do it!"

"You don't have to do this."

"_Shawn!" _He was now blocking her shot, putting himself between her and the kid.

"Please, put the gun down, man."

She felt the shot more than she heard it. Not the bullet entering her body, but as Shawn dropped she felt her heart break. The kid put his hands up as she ran to Shawn, she was vaguely aware Lassiter had entered the shop but that didn't matter right now.

"Shawn, Shawn get up!" She rolled him over and cradled his head on her lap. She gasped when she saw the stain bloom across his chest. "Shawn, please, stay with me. Don't leave me Shawn, you can't leave me! I love you, don't leave me." She was sobbing now. "Shawn, please, you can't leave me!" But he didn't move.

* * *

Juliet woke up with tears streaming down her face. D'art was hissing at the foot of her bed but she didn't care. She jumped out of bed, grabbed her keys off the hook and drove like mad to Shawn's house. When she got there, she flew up the stairs and began pounding on his door. After a moment, he opened it, wearing a t-shirt and boxers and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

* * *

If Shawn believed in clocks, he probably would've been more surprised that someone was knocking on his door, but as he opened the door, he was only surprised by who was standing on the other side of it. "Jules!" He said as he rubbed the sleep out of his eye. Juliet was at his apartment in the middle of the night. Juliet in a tank top and what looked like girl boxers at his apartment in the middle of the night. "Dang, you look really hot, I mean..." Wait, crying Juliet in a tank top and boxers at his apartment in the middle of the night. "Are you crying? Come inside!" She _was_ crying, sobbing actually-her body was heaving as she tried to gain some control.

"Shawn-I, I" She tried to speak but was gasping for air.

He pulled her inside, closing the door behind her and wrapping his arms tight around her. Instantly, he felt her calm down, it was like she melted into his hug and he never wanted the moment to end, but he had to know what happened. "Jules, it's okay, I've got you, can you tell me what happened?" He felt her head nod against his chest, but she didn't move or speak. He began to stroke her back, unsure of if he should say something. "Can I get you anything? Chocolate? Pineapple? Tea?" He had never been good with silence.

She laughed, or he thought she did, it could've been a hiccup. "I'm okay, thanks. I just, I had a dream, or really a dream within a dream I guess?"

"Like Inception? That's dope. Except I'm assuming not, what happened?" He loosened his hold on her and guided her to the couch, being sure to sit first to allow her to choose how close she wanted to sit.

She sat close, so her leg barely touched his, but not too close. "You had a dream, about a case-or I guess it was more of a vision. But you came to my place in the middle of the night to make sure I was okay. Then the next day we solved the case you had a vision about, only instead of hitting me with an axe, the guy shot you in the chest. I think you were trying to prevent anything from happening to me, and he just shot you, right there. You dropped and I..." He could see the tears welling back in her eyes. "Shawn, it was so awful. So real. I just...I had to be sure."

It wasn't how good she looked in her pj's, or the fact that her bed-head was incredibly sexy, it was how much she cared, deeply cared. Yes, he probably would've hopped on his motorcycle and gone to her place if he had a dream where she was axed to death, but she was, distraught maybe? This, plus the pj's and the incredibly sexy bed head and he knew he had to take the plunge. "Juliet," he took her hands in his and was suddenly horrified to realize his had started sweating. "Jules, I would say that I'd never leave you, but that's not true. The truth is, I would take a bullet, or an axe, or anything for you in a heartbeat, because the truth is, my life would mean nothing without you. I love you Juliet O'Hara, and I don't think it's a mistake, but a chance worth taking. I would die for you in a second, but I'll do everything I can to live to be with you."

She just stared at him for a moment, looking surprised and thoughtful. "Okay, but from now on, you're wearing a bullet proof vest." She said as she leaned in.

"Deal." Shawn plunged into the kiss with all the hurt, the heartache, and the love he had felt since he met her.

"I love you Shawn." She whispered as they took a breath. "But I have one question." He looked at her questioningly. "How are you with cats?"

"They love me." He answered, confused by the question.

"Good, I wanted one part of my dream to come true."

She leaned in again, and as he kissed her, ran his fingers through her hair, held her in his arms, all he could think was, 'Funny, all mine just did.'


	4. Chapter 4: Coming Home

**Okay everyone, here's another one! It's a lot different than the rest, a bit more emotional and basically entirely spoken. (Meaning not a lot of description of the scene or whatever.) It's post-dating while they were broken up. I admit, I like this one, but I want to know if you do! I doubt there will be many like this, but if you really like it I can try again. (So review :) )**

Coming Home

"Shawn, what are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you. Can I come in? Please Jules."

She sighed, "Shawn, I don't know if it's a good idea, I don't really want…"

"Juliet. Please, let me in, I just want to get this off my chest and then I'll leave, I promise."

She sighed again and opened the door wider, allowing him to come in. "Shawn, what could you possibly say—"

"I love you…Juliet…" He started, interrupting her yet again. "I've loved you for a long time, long before we got together. I love you, and I didn't want to lose you."

"You lied to me Shawn. For years, you lied about who you were."

"No, Jules. I mean yes, I lied and said I was psychic, and lied about where I got some of the information I used to solve cases because of that, but you know who I am—more than anyone else, you know who I am."

"Shawn…"

"Do you love me?"

"Yes, I do, I love you." She said without really even thinking. "That's why this hurts so much. I can't trust you."

"But you can. Jules when have I ever not been there for you, not had your back?"

"Never. I mean you're either physically there or send Gus when you absolutely have to do something else." It was part of the reason she fell so hard in the first place.

"Right. I'll still never leave you, never abandon you, never betray you."

"But you did! That's just it Shawn, you betrayed me! Just like my dad, just like Ewan, just like Lloyd—you lied about who you are and what you did and just like them you're going to eventually have to leave. That's how it always is."

He circled in the foyer, holding his head. "What if I had told you? Before we were dating, after, timing doesn't matter—what if it had been my idea to tell you?"

"I don't know Shawn, you didn't so it doesn't matter."

"But it does. Would it have made a difference? Would it have changed things?

"I don't know…I'll never know because you never gave me that option!"

"Would you have loved me less, if I had told you I wasn't a psychic before we started dating would you still have loved me?"

"Shawn, I'm not playing the 'what if' game. What's past is past…"  
"Exactly! The past is the past, so—"

"But history repeats itself. How can I trust you Shawn, how can I trust a liar."

He took a step back at that, then moved forward again. "I'm not a liar, Jules, I'm not. I lie about being a psychic, but I do have a gift. I lied that first time to keep Lassie from putting me in jail, and then it was just fun being a psychic detective, and then I didn't want to stop because every time I worked a case for the SBPD I got to see you. And I was so torn because I wanted to tell you, but you were always my biggest believer. I'm not a liar Jules, I'm a coward. I wanted to tell you, I came so close to telling you—but then you'd look at me, or vouch for me, or something and the words died in my throat."

She was crying now. Her heart so wanted to believe him, to forgive him, to jump into his arms without looking back, but past experience was screaming for her to kick him out. "How do I know you're not lying about this?"

"Let me show you." He reached for her hand but she shook him off and he just led her to the bookshelf instead. He pulled out a book, a smallish one with nothing on the binding that she'd never really noticed before. "February 2007, Jules and I scored 100% compatibility on a survey today. I was going to tell her how I felt, and spill that I'm not a real psychic, but for some stupid reason I just said I copied her sheet." He handed her the book, then moved down a shelf and pulled another book. "July 2008, solved a murder at our class reunion. Finally kissed Abigail, but the whole night I was distracted by Jules in a somewhat ridiculous prom dress. She looked gorgeous though, and as we worked on the crime together, I almost told her. I so wanted to, but I was afraid she'd out me or worse, never speak to me again."

He pulled more books of the shelf, books she hadn't even realized were there and started flipping through pages, reading her snippets of essentially the same—he wanted to tell her but didn't for whatever reason.

"Ok, Shawn, you've made your point."

"I'm a coward Juliet. Possibly the biggest one there ever was. It's why I ran from home when I turned 18, it's why I said I was a psychic the first time, and it's why I've been saying it since. But Jules, for the first time in my life I don't want to run. You saved me. More than just protecting me from shooters or crazy men at horror camps, you saved me. You gave me a reason to stay, you give me a reason to get up in the morning, to fight for the people and things I love, and that's why I'm putting it all on the line here. Without you, I'm gone, and I don't want that to sound like an ultimatum because it's not, but without you, there's nothing for me here. I'll hop on my bike and ride till I can breathe again. I love you Juliet, and I'm so sorry, I'm _so sorry_ that I was a coward, but you can make me strong. I promise, no more lies, no more deceit. Please just give me a chance."

She looked deep into his hazel eyes and saw the man she loved. It wasn't about him being psychic or not, that was never why she loved him. She loved that he made her laugh, that when he was in the room she felt like she belonged, that he was always there when she needed him to be, that he never gave up. Psychic was a job, a job that entailed lying, but he had essentially been undercover for seven years. "I wish you would've told me yourself."

"I know, I'm so sorry. I'm—"

"Let me finish. If you had told me yourself, I would've just been hurt. But I felt betrayed, you broke my trust and it's not going to heal fast." She stepped closer and grabbed his hands, still searching deep in his eyes. "But I love you for more than just your title. I believe you are still the man I love, the man I can count on when all else fail. Are you that man?"

"Yes, Jules, I will always be that man." He said earnestly, almost a whisper.

She came in close now, so that anything she said would be considered 'very close talking'. "If that's the case, this isn't a mistake." And with that she crashed her lips onto his, releasing the betrayal and filling up with his love once more. She felt his arms wrap around her, felt her feet leave the floor as he picked her up and spun her.

"You're my whole world Jules. I love you." He whispered, back in the 'very close talking' position.

"I love you too Shawn. Come home."

**So yep, that's it! Also, I just want to respond to some reviews real quick! First of all, thank you everyone who reviewed! It means so much to me! And Pineapplegirl123, I've read a few fanfics before I started writing anything (namely, The Somewhat Psychic Adventures of Spencer "Kate" Jones) and a lot of the Shules ones have dreams, so I may have read yours and been inspired but I promise I had no intention of copying! The shortly after Bounty Hunters thing I actually added just before posting because as I was writing I focused on the whole 'mistake' thing. With that said, I'm so honored you liked mine! **

**Okay, that's it for me-except this last thing, I have like one or two more ideas for one-shots so holla at me if you have any ideas you want to see! You guys rock!**


	5. Chapter 5

**So over the weekend I focused more on writing for my other book (and also watched the 'Dual Spires' episode with my roommate and subsequently the entire first season of 'Twin Peaks' in one day...needless to say, I successfully procrastinated doing any homework). Anyway...it didn't stop me from thinking of another One Shot, hopefully you like it and let me know either way! Oh, this is pre-dating but post Ewan's visit...with no Abigail...sooo yeah...**

"Ewan, where did Daddy go?" Six-year-old Juliet asked her older brother.

"Away, Julie, he went away." Ewan had held Juliet back as their dad packed the car and drove away.

"Is he coming back?"

"I don't think so. Not this time Julie." He had never been so deliberate in leaving before, usually he just disappeared without any warning, but this was different, he was old enough to notice.

Juliet looked up at him with star-blue eyes brimming with tears. "But Ewan, it's almost Christmas!"

"I know." He said as he held her close, letting her cry on his already broadening shoulders. "But I'm here, I'll be here for you this Christmas and every Christmas." He made that promise to her, but also to himself-he would never let her be alone before, during, or after Christmas.

* * *

'December 23rd is a stupid day.' Juliet thought. 'It's not quite Christmas so everyone still has to work, but no one pays attention and it's just stupid...' There were other reasons too, it was the day her father had left, but she didn't like to think about that. It was also the day her brother said she'd never be alone on, yet there she was, packing up her stuff at the station getting ready to go home to a cat. She loved D'art, but he didn't hold her while she cried or make her do silly crafts she had done as a kid or any of that. "Stupid day..." she said aloud unknowingly.

"You okay O'Hara?" her partner asked.

For a second she thought about inviting him to coffee-in a public place of course, but she didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea and she really didn't want to talk about the merit of different guns today. "Yeah, I'm fine Carlton, just a long day. See you tomorrow."

He looked at her skeptically, then nodded. "Take care Juliet."

She smiled at his use of her first name, he really did care and was much more human than he let on. He walked out and she resumed organizing her desk, avoiding the empty house when her phone rang. "Hello-"

"Jules!" It was Shawn Spencer's voice over the phone and she couldn't help but smile. "Jules, you've got to help me, I'm in serious trouble!"

"What? What's wrong Shawn!" Her smile dropped as quickly as it appeared.

"I haven't gotten Gus a Christmas present yet!"

The smile crept back once she realized he wasn't hurt-though if he never got Gus a present, that could change Christmas Day. "Oh dear, that's no good. Do you need police assistance with that?" She cursed herself for flirting with him, getting in a relationship-particularly a relationship with Shawn Spencer was not a good idea, yet she couldn't help herself...

"Yes! I already tried Lassie but apparently he hates Christmas and me and Gus."

She stifled a laugh. "Come on Shawn, you know that's not true..." She thought about leaving it at that, but added, "he likes Gus...and Christmas!"

"Ouch, Detective! Grab some ice on your way out the door to cool my burn! But really, hurry outside before Gus notices the Blueberry is missing." And with that he hung up.

"Shawn?" Was he really waiting outside? She grabbed her purse and keys...and a half frozen bottle of water ...and rushed the door. Just as the doors opened, the bright blue Echo pulled up to the stairs and Shawn reached across the console to pop her door open. She hurried down the stairs and into the car, surprised by the butterflies that had suddenly taken up residence in her stomach. She shook the feeling away and touched the water bottle to Shawn's arm. "To help with the burn."

He laughed, sending the butterflies into a tizzy. "Thank you Jules, now buckle up!"

"Shawn, where are we going?" She asked as she fastened the seat belt.

"Not sure, I figured either you'd see something and get an idea or I would. Whoever comes up with an idea first _doesn't_ have to pay for smoothies."

"Well in that case..."

"Uh, uh, uh. Hold up Detective. Is this a truly inspired idea? Remember, Gus is my best friend in the whole world-"

"Yet you forgot to buy him a Christmas present..."

"-And he expects greatness!" He looked at her with that cocky smile and a wink that transformed those fluttering butterflies into frogs jumping in her stomach and throat.

She quickly looked down, trying to gain control. She couldn't fall for Shawn, not really. Sure, he was funny, smart, and handsome-but he was also immature and...and...there had to be more reasons, so why couldn't she think of any?

"Ooh, the sports outlet, how about that?" Shawn said, breaking the silence.

Eager to take her mind of the merits of dating Shawn, Juliet answered. "Does Gus even play sports?"

"No...but we really need a new finger-football set for the office."

"Shawn...they don't sell 'finger football' here. And don't you just need paper and fingers?"

"But there's special paper with a little football pattern...no, you're right. Let's keep looking."

They drove around for over an hour, every time one would suggest a place, the other shot it down for whatever reason. Yet in that car, with Shawn, driving all over Santa Barbara, Juliet laughed harder and had more fun than she'd had in months.

After her rejection of 'The American Girl Store' Shawn turned into a parking lot and said, "I'm famished. Jappa-Dog on the boardwalk?"

"I could go for that." She said with a smile. Actually, a walk down the boardwalk with Shawn sounded just about perfect, which terrified her. He bought the dogs and gestured a direction and they began to walk. Juliet found herself walking closer to Shawn than normal, so their free arms just touched. "Thank you Shawn." She said before taking her final bite.

"For the Jappa-dog? It's a dollar Jules, I found a 5-spot in the glovebox, so you can have another if you want." Classic Shawn, she had a feeling he knew the thank you was for more than the Jappa-dog, but she notice he had a tendency to talk too much if he got nervous. Though why would he be nervous?

"No-I mean yes, thank you for the food-but that's not really what I meant." She realized they were walking close enough that their hands occasionally touched now, and each touch sent shivers up her hand. "Today is a kind of rough day for me, and I-" He slyly slipped his fingers between hers on one of those touches and held on, jumpstarting her heart and sending various sensations all through her body.

"Jules, I have a confession to make." He held on to her hand but stopped walking, causing her to spin and face him. "I did get Gus a Christmas present. Way back in September actually. I just-"

"You knew...you knew this was the day my Dad left...but how?" It could have been because he was a psychic, part of her had always doubted that ability, but it could've been.

"Ewan called me." He gripped her hand tighter, anticipating her pulling it away, but she didn't want to. She was shocked, and a little angry that her brother called Shawn instead of her, but to some degree she understood. "He told me about what today was and how he wanted to be here for you but...well, you know." He couldn't, she would've been forced to arrest him, which would've officially made December 23rd the worst day ever. "Ewan told me to call and check on you, but I figured you should get out of the house, so I made up the story about the Christmas present. I didn't want to make you uncomfortable because I knew or anything, but I figured you shouldn't be alone."

He was so sweet, and surprisingly sensitive, and incredibly mature. Suddenly all her reasons for not dating him died and she found herself hopelessly in love with Shawn Spencer. "Shawn...I-"

"I also want to give you part one of your Christmas present a little early." He interrupted. "I had this whole plan, but I think-I know I can't wait till Christmas."

She wanted to tell him how she felt, but he looked so eager. "Ok, Shawn, what is it?" She had barely gotten the words out when his lips crashed into hers. Her knees went out instantly and as he wrapped his arms around her to steady her every cell in her body shouted with joy. She wrapped her arms around his neck and took it all in. The feel of his lips on hers, the sensation of his hands moving up and down her back, the scent of Axe body spray that surrounded him. She never wanted it to stop because it couldn't get better than this.

And then it did. With four whispered words. "I love you Juliet."

**So? What did you think? I know it's the beginning of September, but who doesn't need a little Christmas every now and then? Anyway, let me know what you think and ****_please_**** comment with any ideas you may have! I'm running low! Also, I couldn't think of a title for this one, so if you have an idea, please share!**


	6. Chapter 6: Sparring Partners

**Aaannd I'm back! This one's probably going to be pretty short because I don't have much time, but I just wanted to do a quick thank you to TM5 for all the ideas! I actually came up with this idea in the gym yesterday, but I'll definitely pull from that list for the future! Okay, here we go. (Oh, pre-dating...I'll do some post dating soon, I promise!)**

Sparring Partners

Shawn was sitting in his office playing Sonic on his phone and thinking about Juliet...again...

Since he met her at that diner all those years ago, he'd never really been able to get her out of his head. He'd be out with another lovely lady, or hanging out with Gus, or trying to fall asleep and BAM, Detective Juliet O'Hara pops into his brain. It was distracting. Or disorienting maybe, he'd never wanted something so badly and not had the guts to go get it. People often thought he was cocky, but really he just wasn't self-conscious enough to not go after something he wanted.

Except Juliet.

He flirted, yes. He'd even stolen the tiniest of kisses on the day he played the Bounty Hunter, but he never really laid it on the line...and that confused him...

He was losing focus and just as poor Sonic was about to run into a stone column, the screen changed to a picture of Juliet in her ridiculous sorority clothes and the words "Juliet, Accept," and "Ignore". He quickly pressed the green "Accept" and answered, trying to sound smooth.

"Jules, what's happening girl?" Had he really just said that? Good thing Gus wasn't here...

"Um...I'm at the gym. Are you okay?" He heard her voice and the sound of clanging gym equipment through the phone.

"Yeah, I was just trying to show Gus how ridiculous he sounds when he answers the phone." It was a weak cover, but hopefully she'd buy it.

"Ah, well you can assure him that it's just bizarre." There was an awkward pause and he mentally kicked himself for answering so awkwardly. "Anyway...my friend bailed on me and I could use a sparring partner...do you want to come? Loser buys Jamba Juice?"

Was she asking him out? Or was this purely between friends? "You sure you can handle all this awesome?"

She laughed, even through the phone that laugh caused his stomach to flip. "Oh, I can handle it. Head on over, I'll just run a couple laps. Find me when you get here. Bye!" Then the line went dead.

It sounded date-like...activity together then food, that was the typical date formula right? But working out in the gym wasn't exactly a normal first-date...but he wasn't exactly a normal guy...

Pondering all this and changing, Shawn was amazed at the power that woman had over him. He was never unsure of himself, never the one on his toes. It was weird. After digging around in the closet for the athletic shoes he'd left in the office a year before and debating whether or not he should bring a change of clothes, Shawn hopped on his motorcycle and drove down the street to the gym. He had almost cancelled that membership, but for once he was glad he'd kept it. After throwing his bag in a locker, he went looking for her.

When he saw her, his heart almost stopped. She was jogging on the track wearing hot pink running shorts and a bright purple top and her golden hair was back in a ponytail swaying with each steady stride. 'People shouldn't be allowed to look that good while running.' He thought, wishing he had taken personal fitness a little more seriously.

As she came around the bend, their eyes met and she smiled. Shawn honestly didn't think there was a prettier sight. Her make-up was just barely smeared, accentuating her bright blue eyes even more, her cheeks were flushed with color, and her whole body glistened. "Hey Shawn!" She said, slightly winded. Then she stopped by him, placing a hand on his shoulder to stretch. The touch was electrifying, something he had only ever experienced with her.

"You ready for this Jules? I'll warn you, I watch WWE and in my head I can totally take them."

She laughed again, dragged him to the sparring mats and chucked padding at him. "I'm sure they would be very intimidated of your mad, imaginary skills, but for now you're just going to be a punching bag."

"I see how it is. I'm surprised Lassie didn't ask me to do this ages ago." She wasn't really flirting, but she wasn't _not_ flirting either. Curse his overactive brain.

"I'm pretty sure he'd shoot you. Or knock you out or something. But I could ask him if he wants a turn!" She strapped on padded gloves while he put the mitts on his hands.

"I think I'll pass." He held up his hands for her to hit and was surprised by the strength at which she did. They started pretty easy, him slowly moving his hands and her punching the targets. Then he started moving faster, making the motions more complex and 'attacking' her in various ways, progressing to taking off the mitts so he could actually grab her. They talked and laughed and Shawn couldn't think of the last time he'd enjoyed anyone's company this much.

He only lost focus for a second, but that was all it took for Juliet to land a punch square in the nose and drop him to the floor. The world went black for a second, then white, then he opened his eyes to see Juliet leaning over him with her hands covering her mouth. "Ugh, Jules. I think you got me." He groaned.

He thought she was covering her mouth with shock, until she spoke and he realized she was laughing. "Oh Shawn!" Burst of giggles. "I'm sorry! Now it's going to get bigger!"

"Bigger! You'd better watch it Detective..." He said as he checked his nose for blood or dislocation-both were negative, miraculously.

"I'm sorry! It's just...your face!" She said through the laughter. Then he got an idea, he carefully lined his legs up, then sideswept her so she came down in one smooth motion, flat on her back. She coughed as the wind got knocked out of her then eventually exclaimed, "Shawn!"

"Jules, I'm sorry!" He was, he hadn't expected her to come down quite so hard and he rolled over so he could crawl to her. "You alright?"

She was laughing again, laughing and gasping for air. "You...are...a...jerk!" She said through the laughter.

"A jerk huh, then I guess it shouldn't surprise you that I do this!" And with that he pinched her side, sending a jolt through her body, then continued to tickle her so she was rolling and laughing uncontrollably.

"Stop!" She giggled. "Stop, I can't breathe!"

"Can't breathe, looks like I'm going to have to do mouth-to-mouth!" He moved in close, much like he had when he stole that kiss, and just like that night, she hadn't pulled back. He held, millimeters away from their lips touching, waiting for a signal that it was okay and dearly hoping she didn't shoot him down again.

"It does look that way, doesn't it." She whispered, laughter stopped now.

She was so close, so beautiful, and now was finally his chance for a proper kiss, but something held him back. She would be more than a fling, he always knew that, she was too important to be temporary. If he moved forward, that would be it. He would have his last first-date. He thought about all this then softly spoke, a quiet moment in a noisy gym. "I have one question."

"Yes?" She sounded nervous, or excited, or both, he wasn't sure. She was always the one he couldn't quite read.

He paused for another second as the final doubts died within him. "Would you like to go to dinner with me, maybe a movie after? A proper date?"

A smile broke across her face. "I'd like that, I'd like that very much." She nearly purred the words and Shawn finally took the plunge, closing that very small gap between their lips and finding love on the other side.

**So I started this at a break between classes and finished it after midnight when I very desperately needed to go to bed, so I'm sorry if the ending is lame or full of errors, I'll fix it if it's not good. But if you liked it, let me know! Basically just review, it makes my world a happier place :)**


	7. Chapter 7: Last First Date

**Ugh, so I had this like halfway written but clicked out of the tab, and even bringing the tab back didn't bring back the content...silly me...so hopefully this time is as good-or better. It's actually a continuation of Ch. 6: Sparring Partners. I won't often due them strung together, but I actually kind of like how this plays out.**

The Last First Date

She was nervous. She never really got nervous, but tonight was finally her first date with Shawn. After a kiss that made her think she was going to burst, Shawn took her out to Jamba Juice but emphasized that it was not their first date. Unfortunately, the first time either of them was free was Thursday and after five agonizing days, Thursday had finally come. So why was she nervous? She had seen Shawn-though they were keeping the date secret so they hadn't talked about it. Still, as much as she was excited for the date, she was just nervous.

Hence the six outfits she had tried on already. After trying, and failing, to get a hint about what their date was, she had resigned to being surprised-though that made picking out clothes considerably more difficult. Her four-month-old kitten D'artagnan had claimed his place on the pile of the discarded clothes and as she tried on her yellow sun dress and turned to ask the kitty for his opinion, she heard a knock at the door.

"Just a minute!" She yelled. It was exactly 7:00, how was he on time? Shawn was never on time...

She looked in the mirror again and sighed, she didn't like the way the dress looked, normally it was one of her favorites but today it just didn't look right. However, she didn't want to leave Shawn waiting at the door. She hurried to the door, smoothed her dress one more time, then opened it to reveal a particularly handsome looking Shawn wearing a sport coat, button-down shirt, and jeans and holding a pineapple.

"Jules! You look...amazing..."

She could hear the honesty in her voice and instantly her doubts about the dress died. She opened the door wider and gestured for him to come in. "You don't look so bad yourself." It was weird openly flirting with him. He had made passes at her for years, and she hadn't done much to stop him, she even flirted back sometimes, but it was never so overt.

"I brought you a pineapple, the Hawaiian fruit of first dates."

She accepted the fruit and put it on the counter. "I'm pretty sure it's the fruit of friendship."

"Eh, I've heard it both ways...actually...I haven't. I do believe you're right."

She smiled, surprised by his admittance of being wrong. He sounded nervous too, which was odd because he never sounded nervous. "I'm just going to grab shoes and stuff, you okay here for a minute?"

"Yep, I'll just go through all your drawers and books...ooh is this your new kitty?" His voice jumped an octave with excitement.

"Yeah, that's D'art, he'll probably run away in a second though." She then watched with amazement as Shawn scooped the kitten up. "Or he'll just cuddle in your arms...that works..." She walked back to her room and looked in the mirror again and realized she did look good. Shawn had the amazing ability to squash all her insecurities and make her feel beautiful and wanted. Suddenly, all the nervousness in her died and she filled with excitement. She was finally going on a date with Shawn Spencer! She quickly put on earrings, slipped a bracelet on her wrist, and grabbed a necklace as she slipped into her shoes. "Shawn, can you help me with this necklace?" He was sitting on the barstool at her counter rubbing D'art's belly but he instantly got up and started walking towards her. She could put the necklace on herself, but as the faint trace of Axe body spray enveloped her, she was glad she asked for help.

She felt him fumble with the clasp, then once he got it he gently and almost hesitantly put his hands on her shoulders. "You're beautiful." He whispered in her ear, sending a shiver down her spine. She had never felt more beautiful, not just pretty, but truly beautiful than in that moment. He then walked around her to the door and extended his hand. "You ready? I hope you're not too hungry because I was planning on a walk down the beach first."

"That sounds amazing." It did. She had dreamt of walking down the beach hand in hand with Shawn for years now. She gently placed her hand in his, and he quickly took it and adjusted so their fingers interlocked. He walked her to the car, opening and closing the door to the Blueberry for her. The car ride was quiet but not awkward, it was the comfortable quiet that comes with years of experiences together. He parked at the beach and ran around to open the door again.

"Have I told you how beautiful you look today?" He said it with a smile, but it was serious at the same time; she couldn't help but smile.

"You can tell me any time you want. And you look fantastic in that coat, by the way." He really did.

"Aw stop, you're making me blush." He snuck his fingers back through hers and waved their arms wildly for a second before leaving them comfortably at their sides, still holding her hand tightly. "So Jules, how was your week?"

"My week? Shawn I saw you yesterday."

"I know, but we don't really get to talk often. So, spill. Tell me everything, what D'art did, how sore you were after my intense sparring skills, the works." He meant it, she had never met a guy that legitimately wanted to hear about her week. So she told him. It was a little weird at first, but soon the words flowed out of her mouth. Shawn listened intently, commenting when appropriate, and never letting go of her hand.

Suddenly she looked around and realized she didn't recognize anything. "Shawn, where are we? I've never been this far down the beach."

"I have. This is a beautiful spot to watch the sunset...which should be in ten minutes if Google was correct."

"Shawn, did you plan this?" He just smiled and stroked her thumb with his. She smiled and snuggled up to his side, placing her free hand on his arm. "So, how are you that good with D'art? He doesn't even cuddle with me like that."

"I don't know. I prefer dogs, but I like cats and they tend to like me. Like remember Little Boy Cat? She hated Gus. Puked all over his car."

"You know Little Boy Cat has a family right?" She had been to McNabb's a few weeks before. "D'art is her son."

"Really? That's amazing!" They spent the next couple minutes talking about LBC and her husband until Shawn got quiet and pointed to the setting sun. "Isn't it beautiful? Jules," he turned and took both her hands, so they were looking at each other. "I have to tell you something. Before the sun sets, I need to tell you." He took a deep breath then looked seriously into her eyes. "Jules, I'm not a psychic. Very observant, good at putting things together, but there's no such thing as psychics, not like you think I am. I'm so sorry, I know this will hurt you, but I can't...I can't start a relationship on a lie. Not with you."

She took a step back and shook out of his hands. "Shawn...I...I need a minute." She kicked off her shoes, hiked up her dress and started running farther down the beach. 'Not a psychic...he lied...for years he lied.' But he also told her. Came out and told the truth. Part of her had known, suspected at least. She didn't believe in psychics, but Shawn had been so convincing, so real. But still, occasionally he'd add too many theatrics, or when he got flustered he forgot them altogether.

She was still jogging when she noticed something up ahead. Candlelight. She got closer and slowed down, taking in the sight. The candles were half buried in the sand, surrounding a picnic blanket that had a basket on top. An empty vase stood in the middle of the blanket. She stood there, stunned by the sight and looking around for the couple who left it.

Then she saw him. Shawn, holding a bouquet of daisies, her favorite flowers, in one hand and her shoes in the other. "Gus has the Blueberry waiting just on the street if you want him to take you home, but if you're up to it, I'd really like to finish this date."

"You planned this? All of this?" She asked as she reached out for the daisies.

"Somewhat. I was hoping we'd be able to talk, then I'd give you the flowers I had waiting, then we'd walk and you'd see the vase and the dinner, but I had planned on telling you, yes." He was standing back, giving her space, but still there enough to be a presence.

"And Gus?"

"I didn't want you to be forced to walk and ride back with me or take a cab. So I had him on retainer. He also lit the candles."

She thought for a second as she took in the sight. He had planned all of this, even giving her an escape route if she wanted one. "And how do you tell Gus that I want to stay?" A smile broke over his face. "I'm not saying you're off the hook, but I want to talk."

He nodded eagerly and sent Gus a text. "So, ask me anything, I'm officially an open book." He said seriously as he gestured to the blanket. They sat and talked, talked about why he 'became a psychic', why he continued to lie, who all knew...and as the conversation progressed, it became less of an interrogation and more of a conversation and she hadn't even realized she'd begun eating. She realized that even though the fact that he lied hurt her, she might have done the same thing in that situation, and he was truly helpful and incredible.

And she loved him.

It was startling to realize you had gradually fallen in love with someone, but as the candles burned low and they munched on chocolate dipped strawberries and pineapple, laughing and talking, she knew she was hopelessly in love with Shawn Spencer.

"Jules, do you want to go for a ride?" He asked as the candles were almost burned out.

"What, like on your motorcycle? Shawn, I'm in a dress." He smiled and pulled a pair of jeans out of a beach bag she hadn't noticed before.

"There's also a tank top, jacket, and shoes, if you want to go."

She almost teared up, he had clearly put so much thought into this. As she grabbed the bag and looked through, she found that not only were the clothes cute, they were in her size. "You bought all this for me?"

"I wanted this to be your best first date because..." He faded out, leaving the sentence unfinished.

"Because why, Shawn?"

He stood up, pulled her up with both hands, and looked into her eyes. Even in the dim light she could see the gold sunburst around the pupil, surrounded by green, but she had never seen such an intense, honest look from anyone. "Because I want it to be your last, Juliet. I was hoping that if we got through me telling you the truth, we could get through anything because I love you Juliet. More than anyone or anything I love you. And I'm sorry if that's straightforward, but I'm not always good with words and..."

This time she cut him off by leaning in close, so that their lips were barely touching. "I love you too Shawn." Then he closed the gap and her heart nearly exploded with love.

Eventually, after some of the best minutes of her life, she had gotten changed and as Shawn zipped along the road Juliet held on tight, burying her face against his back and thinking how amazing it was to be on her last first date.

**So I'm pretty sure I need to work on endings...I'll get on that...but I hope you like this! Please review! **

**This has been adjusted...thank you Pineapplegirl123 for pointing that out, I thought LBC was a girl, but didn't feel like looking it up, but it's now been fixed, plus a few commas and paragraphs have been switched, etc. etc. Hope everyone likes it!**


	8. Chapter 8: Letting Go and Holding On

**So fluffy Shules is wonderful, and I love writing it, but I also think I have an amazing opportunity to put some more serious issues out there. I'm not sure if I'll ever do another one of these, but I figured it was worth a shot. But anyway, don't let that scare you off! It should still give you the warm fuzzies, just in a different way than fluffy, if that makes any sense...But review/PM/whatever! Let me know what you think!**

**The background for this is Shawn just proposed and Juliet said no.**

Letting Go and Holding On

"Shawn, I-I just can't. I love you but I can't." Tears were streaming down Juliet's face. The proposal was so sweet, so incredibly thoughtful, so what she had wanted, but when it came down to it, she had said no.

"How can you say that? How can you say you love me but you don't want to marry me? To spend the rest of our lives together?" Shawn was pacing, head in hands. "What was all of this then? A joke? You just figured we'd date forever? Figured I'm a commitment-phobe so you'd never have to deal with anything serious?"

"Shawn, no it's not that. I do love you, I love us, but-"

"But what Juliet?"

"What if love isn't enough? What if five years down the road you're bored with me or in love with someone else?" She was glad they were in a private place. Glad there weren't spectators.

"Are you kidding?" He looked at her with incredulity. "Jules, it's you. It's only you and it's only ever going to be you. I _love_ you more than anything."

"I know. I know you do and I do too but-"

"What? Are you thinking about your parents? Mine? They're not us Jules. They'll tell you that! Don't let their mistakes keep us from living our lives!"'

"So you're saying that we're both mistakes? Our parents never should've gotten married, never had kids?" Her tone changed, it was sharp now, defensive.

He looked at her with awe, she never jumped on him like that. "What are you hiding? What are you really scared of Jules?"

She looked into his eyes, his captivating eyes and broke, sobs wracking her body. "I want you to get mad at me Shawn. Just be mad at me for once, right now, please, I need you to be mad."

He tried to put his arms around her but she shook him off. "Jules, how could I ever be mad at you?"

"If we get married you will be. We'll fight over something stupid and you'll be mad at me and I need to see what that looks like. I need to see you mad. And not mad at the results of a football game or a criminal, but mad at me."

Her eyes were red and he saw the glimmer of tears down her face. "What are you not saying? What happened to you?" Something was wrong, this wasn't nerves or doubt, this was pure fear.

"Can you please just be mad?" It was almost a plea.

"Jules. Tell me. What happened? Who got mad? Talk to me Sweetheart." He slowly approached, still not touching her but standing close.

"It was nothing. He was no one."

"Jules, what did he do to you?" His voice became more pressing. He needed to know.

"I'd forget to wear the shirt he bought, or I'd take too long getting ready. It was always something small because I was so careful..."

"_What did he do_?"

"No one knew. And he could be so sweet. So incredibly loving. I couldn't believe it was the same man. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde I'd whisper in my head. Whisper...in my head...because I was scared he'd hear it if I thought it loud..."

"_JULES!"_ He nearly shouted her name, trying to snap her out of whatever flashback she was stuck in. "What did he do to you?"

She looked into his eyes. The sobbing had stopped but she was still crying, though he doubted she even realized. "It was never much." She looked to the ground again. "Never enough to leave a visible mark. A slap to the face. A punch or two in the gut or back. I'd have blood in my pee and try to convince myself my period came early. I'd touch a bruise and try to focus on the good times. He always apologized, promised he'd never do it again. Tell me how sorry he was, how much he loved me. And I believed him. I always believed him because I loved him. No one knew. No one but us. They thought we were happy, and I tried to convince myself I was. Then I became a cop. I realized I wasn't happy when I was envious of criminals I was putting in a holding cell because at least behind bars they were safe. But every time I tried to leave, he'd do something and I'd come running back." She looked back at him, and he felt a tear roll down his face as he saw her normally radiant-blue eyes looked dark and dim. "I loved him Shawn. And when I moved to Santa Barbara I promised myself I'd never let that happen again. I got out once, and people rarely do. I love you..._so much_...too much in fact. So I can't. I'm so sorry."

"Jules..." His heart broke for her while it combusted with hatred towards the man that did this to her. That hurt her so bad that even the scars left her broken. "Sweetie, you have to know I'd never hit you. _Never_. And I know that those are just words, but you have to believe me. I'm not going to ask for his name because I'd kill him with my bare hands, I still might but that's not what this is about. He is the scum of the earth, the worst possible man, but I am not that man." He wanted to reach out, wipe the tears from her face, but he held back, worried he'd scare her by going towards her face. "Juliet. I love you more than I knew was possible. I had never...I never realized my heart could be so full of good." He was working hard to hold the tears back now.  
"I've dealt with a lot of crap in my life. Nothing as horrible as that, but a lot of crap. And for years...for years my heart was so full of anger. Anger at my dad, at my bosses, at life in general. All I loved was me and maybe a little bit Gus, but there was so much anger, so much hate, that the little bit of love did nothing to fill the empty void-the darkness. And then came you-" He looked deep into her eyes, trying to express more than words could say. "-and you were light. You gave me a reason to stay, a reason to live, and then you did the most incredible thing of all.  
You loved me.  
With all my crap. All my facades, all my anger you loved me and filled the void, brightened the darkness. Jules, I could never get angry with you because you are the antidote to my anger, my only cure. So please. Let go. Let go of the fear that's holding you back. Let go of the hurt."

"What if I can't?" She sounded scared to hope. "I've been holding on so tight for so long, I don't know how to be without it."

"So hold on to me." He reached for her hand now and she let him take it. "Jules, hold on to me like I hold on to you and we'll be too close to break."

She started weeping again, her back bent with the gravity of the moment.  
And Shawn was there.  
He pulled her up, pulled her close, and held on. And in that moment, she let go of her past. To some degree, the abuse would always be there, always haunt her darkest dreams, but she wasn't going to let it control her anymore. Because she had Shawn. Shawn who wanted to marry her. Who would be there to hold her after those dreams and who she could hold on to as she learned to live again. "Ask me again." She whispered into his chest.

"What?" He asked softly, turning his head so he could see her better.

She looked into his eyes, his incredible hazel eyes and said it, "Ask me again, Shawn."

Realization dawned on his face and he hesitantly let her go, making sure she was strong enough to stand on her own, got on one knee, and pulled a small box from his pocket. "Juliet, will you marry me?"

"Yes, I would love to marry you!" She said through the tears and a smile broke across her lips.

He slipped the ring on her finger and picked her up and spun her, kissing her as he slowly put her down again. "I love you Juliet." He whispered from their favorite 'Very Close Talking' position.

"I love you Shawn." She whispered back and as their lips met again she knew nothing could ever break them apart.


	9. Chapter 9: Hello Starfish

**So, I hope you all liked the last one, and here's a short and sweet fluffy Shules! (They're married here)**

Hello Starfish

"Shawn, I can't do this. I've changed my mind."

"Jules, you can't change your mind. This is happening whether you want it to or not."

"No, no, I can't. I'm not strong enough. I can't do this."

Tears were mixing with the sweat already running down Juliet's face. Shawn gently kissed his wife's forehead, ran his fingers through her hair, and looked into her bright blue eyes. "Sweetie, you are the strongest woman I know. The most amazing woman I've ever met. If anyone can do this, it's you."

"I'm scared. What if-"

"No what ifs. None. Jules, you think I'm not scared too? This is terrifying. But you are going to be an amazing mother, and because of you I'm so excited to be a father. I love you. We can do this." Shawn looked at the doctor, who nodded. "Now grab my hand and PUSH!" She did, and Shawn thought his hand was going to break, he knew his wife was strong but dang, that was one tight grip. He watched with amazement as her whole body contracted then heard the most beautiful sound in the world-his baby's first cry.

"It's a girl!" The doctor said and Shawn thought his heart might explode. A baby girl, his baby girl. "Does Dad want to cut the cord?"

"You know that's right!" He said then he leaned in close to Juliet. "I love you so much sweetie, you're beautiful." He kissed her again then turned to the doctor who was holding his reptilian looking baby. He had seen pictures of new born babies and always thought they looked creepy at this point, but his baby girl was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. He was a dad. He cut the cord where they showed him and they plopped that squirmy bundle in his arms and he felt a love he hadn't even fathomed. Suddenly nothing mattered anymore. Nothing but his family. Nothing but this amazing little girl. "Jules, look at what we made!" He carefully walked back towards his wife, who had never looked more beautiful, and gently placed the bundle in her arms. "We made this. Our love made a person!"

"I love you Shawn." He wiped a tear from her eye and felt one fall down his own cheek as he looked at his wife and daughter. Nothing could top this moment. Nothing was better than this. He carefully laid beside his wife, wrapping an arm around her and carefully placing his other hand on his daughter. She wrapped her tiny hand around his finger, her whole hand around just one finger, and stole his heart.

"If you'd like, we can clean her up, rinse out that beautiful head of hair!" The nurse said cheerily. She did, she had his hair, already, and it was beautiful. She was beautiful. He couldn't stop looking at her. However, he and Juliet conceded to let the nurse clean, weigh and measure their baby girl. He watched them the whole time, he couldn't let her out of his sight, not for a minute. Once they had finished-she was 19 inches, 6 pounds 13 ounces, and her dark brown hair could already be styled-he held out his arms to hold his baby again. "Did you have a name picked?" The same nurse asked.

"Jaime Madeline Spencer" They said in unison, they hadn't known the sex of the baby, but they'd picked names a month before.

The nurse smiled and placed little Jaime in his arms, wrapped so tight in a baby blanket he could only see her face and part of one tiny hand. "Hello Starfish" he whispered the pet name he had picked out years before and as he turned back to his wife he knew his life was forever changed for the better.

**So the title probably gave it away for most of you, but I hope you like this chapter! Please please please review and let me know what you think!**


	10. Chapter 10: Second Chances

**Sorry it's been so long since I've posted! This one is really long-I thought about making it two or even turning it into it's own story (which I still may do eventually), but I like it and it's totally different than anything else I've done or read so enjoy!**

Second Chances

He couldn't believe he was going to a funeral. He hated funerals. But as Shawn walked in to the funeral home, he knew he couldn't be anywhere else.

"Daddy? Why are all these people here?" His daughter squeezed his hand tight and he squeezed it back, their secret language of "I love you's".

"To say goodbye, Baby." He looked at his sweet baby girl as she tried to understand what he meant. She was five now, and he couldn't believe how much she'd turned his life upside down over those five years. As much as it hurt, as much as it wasn't easy, he wouldn't have it any other way. And he had no idea what he would do without her.

"Can I go talk to that little girl? She looks sad." He nodded without looking at who his daughter pointed to.

* * *

Where was Rebecca? Juliet scanned the room full of sorrowful people in black for her baby and finally spotted her hugging another little girl. She was so strong, so amazing through all of this. Rebecca was the only reason she was hanging on, the only reason she'd held on the past five years. But who was that other girl? The line of mourners kept her from investigating further, but something seemed familiar. Rich brown hair with just the slightest wave. She was turning now, facing her and the little strangers eyes were—no—it couldn't be.

"Thank you." She said to the woman expressing her sympathies. "If you'll excuse me for a second, I have to check on my daughter." She didn't even wait for a reply, she just pushed toward the center of the room.

* * *

He hadn't seen Juliet in six years. When she went on vacation with Declan and came back engaged, he resigned from Psych, and married Abigail three months later. He hadn't been mad at Juliet, though looking back it may have appeared that way, he just couldn't be around her and know there was no future with her anymore. He hadn't seen or talked to Juliet in six years and now he was at her husband's funeral.

"This was a mistake." He mumbled. He needed to leave. He scanned the room for his little girl and gasped when he saw the golden plait of the girl she was hugging. As they separated and he saw her dazzling blue eyes, Shawn felt his heart drop out of his chest. That could only be Juliet's daughter.

* * *

It couldn't be. It couldn't actually be Shawn's daughter. Shawn, with a daughter. But those eyes, those eyes could only be from him. She had almost reached the girls now, it was a slow process pushing through the mourners. When she finally got close, she was so focused on the girls that she hadn't even noticed the man who was approaching on the other side.

"Jules." He said and her stomach filled with butterflies she'd thought were long dead.

"Shawn." It had been a long time since she'd said his name aloud, but the name felt good on her lips. She looked at him. He hadn't changed much physically, but there was something different about him. The laughter and joy with life had dimmed in his eyes.

"Daddy, this is Rebecca, her daddy just died but I said if we became friends she could borrow you sometimes. Is that okay?" Shawn's whole expression softened as he ran his hand down his daughter's hair. So it was true, Shawn was a dad.

"That's very sweet of you, Rachel, but I don't think Rebecca—"

"I don't want a daddy." Rebecca said and Juliet's heart dropped. "Daddies are mean."

No, she couldn't let their secret out. Not here. Not now. "Sweetie, you don't mean that." She knew it was a lie, her daughter did mean it and she couldn't blame her. Experience had taught her that was true. But no one knew Declan like they did. They didn't see how angry he got when he was drunk. They didn't know that when an investment fell through and he lost all the money, he'd filled the hole with whiskey. Everyone thought it was a tragic accident, but she knew the truth. She was just glad no one else was hurt by his drunk driving. "It's just the shock." She said to Shawn, but she couldn't look at him for she was sure he'd see through her lie.

* * *

Why wasn't she looking at him? What was she trying to hide? "I understand." He reached for her hand, barely hesitating as he got close, but she let him take it. "Jules, I'm…I'm so sorry about Declan." His hand had that familiar tingling sensation that he hadn't felt in years—that he'd only ever felt with her.

"Thanks." She looked at him and he realized her eyes were grayer, less bright than he had remembered them. He didn't know what to say. All he knew is that he wanted to take her in his arms and hold her. Instead, he let their hands break apart.

Fortunately, Rachel—ever sensitive to her surroundings—saved him from himself. "I like your braid Rebecca. It's really pretty." Her sweet little voice said.

"Thanks, my mommy did it for me. Sometimes it hurts because she pulls hard, but not today." The child was like a miniature of Juliet, and just like her mother, she captured his heart.

"Oh, my daddy doesn't know how to make braids." There it was, the melancholy tone that broke his heart from the one person who held it together.

"Did your mommy die too?"

Now it was his turn to drop his gaze, unable to face Juliet. He felt Rachel's hand sneak into his and was steeled by her love. She answered her newfound friend. "No, she left when I was a baby. I never knew her." He looked at his baby girl. She had his eyes, hair, and smile—but her nose and ears were her Abigail's, as was her deep desire to help people. But fortunately she lacked the fear and flightiness that plagued both her parents.

"Oh." Little Rebecca said as she reached for her mother's hand. "Well my mommy is really nice. I bet she would braid your hair."

"Really?" Rachel asked, eyes twinkling with excitement.

"Anytime." Juliet said before looking at him for approval. He nodded and squeezed Rachel's hand.

"Jules." He said, unsure of what to say next. "Um—if, if you ever need…I mean I know..." He hated being at a loss for words. Hated being unable to talk to her. Hated that it was awkward.

"We should catch up." She interrupted his ramble, seemingly without thinking. "Plus Rebecca could use a friend her age." She rushed the words, like she was trying to cover.

"Have you been to the McDonald's with the new PlayPlace?"

"No, but she's been begging. Monday at 5:30 okay? Sorry it's so early it's just—"

"Bedtime." It was his turn to interrupt now. "Sounds great. And Jules, again, I'm so sorry." She smiled a sad smile and from the corner of his eye he saw the little girls wave goodbye.

"Thanks Shawn. See you soon."

He had to force himself to turn away. To walk to his car and wait till Monday to speak to her again, knowing this was the second chance he never thought he'd get.

* * *

_Six months later_

"Mommy? Is my last name going to be Spencer now? Just like Rachel's?" Juliet finished tying the bright blue bow in her daughter's hair and straightened the green one at her waist.

"It doesn't have to change if you don't want it to. You and I can keep our last name." She and Shawn had talked about it before, but with as fast as everything was happening, she'd completely forgotten to talk to Rebecca.

"I want it to change. That way Jesse Sater won't sit between us in Kindergarten anymore." Juliet laughed. They'd probably have to talk about this more, but she was glad she seemed open to the idea of a name change. "Mommy?" Rebecca looked serious now and Juliet carefully crouched, being sure not to wrinkle her beautiful white gown, to look into her daughter's eyes. "Do you love Shawn?"

"Yes Baby. Very much." She was glad she opted for the waterproof makeup as she was already fighting back tears.

"And Rachel. Do you love her?"

"Yes Baby, but you'll always be my Sunshine." It was a pet name she'd had since she was born with a full head of golden hair.

"Good." Rebecca smiled, wiped a tear from her mother's eye and kissed her cheek. "I love them too." Then her face became inquisitive. "Do you think I can call Shawn 'Daddy' now?"

"If you'd like. I think he'd like that very much." She nodded, pensive. Just then the door opened and Madeline came in.

"Juliet. You look so beautiful." She gave her a kiss on the cheek as she stood up. "As do you Miss Rebecca." Rebecca beamed at the woman she was already calling 'Nanna'. "It's time. You ready Pumpkin?" Rebecca nodded eagerly and Juliet wiped another tear from her eye as she nodded.

As she stepped out into the surprisingly warm Vancouver sunshine—she and Shawn had decided there was no better place for their Second Chance Wedding—Juliet was immediately greeted by her newest love. Rachel had a green bow in her hair and a blue one around her waist that either her mother or Madeline must have tied because there was no way Shawn made a bow that pretty.

"Jules! Can I call you Mommy now? I talked to Rebecca and my daddy and they both said I could if you said it was okay." She was bouncing on her toes, much like Shawn when he was excited.

"Of course Sweetpea, you can call me Mommy." Both girls cheered and crashed into her for hugs. She held on tight, letting go of the pain in the past and embracing her future.

"Okay girls," Her mother said. "Time to get ready!" They ran off together, hand in hand. "Juliet, I've never been so happy for you because I've never seen you so happy. I know the past few years have been difficult, but I also know the next many will be wonderful."

"Thanks Mom. I love you." She hugged her mom before she started for her seat and Juliet smiled as she heard the music start. Lloyd walked up to her and kissed her head while Frank took her hand and kissed it. They had both been so supportive through everything, she couldn't imagine choosing just one to walk her down the aisle. This was the best day of her life, the day all her dreams were finally coming true.

* * *

"Do I look okay? Is my tie straight?" Shawn had been asking Gus the same questions for hours now, he'd never been so nervous.

"Shawn, you look great. Just calm down and enjoy this." Gus had been surprisingly calm throughout the day. He'd even managed to see people crying without bursting into tears himself. He'd gotten ordained online the day Shawn proposed to Juliet and he couldn't imagine it any other way. It was a small wedding, both families, Chief Vick and family and even Lassie with his wife and son. But it was perfect. He didn't care who was there aside from three people.

The music had started and the first two of those people stepped forward, giggling as they spread flower pedals across the aisle. Rachel had never looked happier than she was right now, sharing a basket of flower petals with her new sister. When Abigail left, she had still been in a bassinette and he had no idea how he was going to survive, but somehow she kept him going and now she was an amazing little girl. And Rebecca, her mother's child through and through—when Rachel was born, he'd been amazed at how she changed his capacity to love, but she was his, all his. Yet he loved Rebecca with a fierceness he'd never imagined, she may not have been his genetically, but she was in every way that counted and he would move Heaven and Earth to keep either of his girls safe.

He smiled at the most beautiful five-year-olds in the world and caught a glimpse of his parents. Even his dad had a tear in his eye, one that hadn't been there at his first wedding. His old man shot him a nod and a wink as the music changed and the guests rose and turned.

And in that moment, his heart stopped.

She was the most beautiful person he'd ever seen. Beautiful couldn't even describe her, she had ascended past beauty. The dress, her hair, her incredible smile shattered his expectation of their big day. And her eyes. Her eyes were more blue and dazzling than he'd ever seen, than he knew eyes could get, and they were locked on him.

He was finally marrying Juliet.

Suddenly nothing else mattered. There was no pain, no regret, because every moment good or bad had led to this, right now. And this was perfection. He barely even noticed Rachel come to his side and slip her hand in his, he was so captivated by Juliet. Her walk down the aisle seemed agonizingly long, but when she made it to the end, and he took her hand into his, he knew he couldn't be happier.

* * *

Gus started speaking but Juliet barely heard him. She was finally marrying Shawn. As she looked into his eyes, she was astounded at how green they were, how full of life. She'd had many happy days in her life, but as she handed Rebecca the bouquet, winked at Rachel, and looked at Shawn she knew this was the best day of her life. It was time for vows, she had Shawn had decided to write their own and he had insisted on going first.

"Jules—Juliet. I had vows written before, but suddenly they don't capture what I want to say, so stay with me and I'll try to make this coherent.  
I've wanted this day for ten years. Really, since the first day I met you I knew you were the one I wanted to marry—which was new for me because I wasn't big on commitment. But if you had asked me ten years ago how I pictured this day, it would have been a very different picture than today.  
This is a 'Second Chance Wedding' because we both have pasts, but what I realized right now is that those pasts are exactly what brought us here. It's not about mistakes or choices we could have made in a moment, it's about this moment right here where my daughter and your daughter—our daughters—are flower girls and our family and friends are here. All of that, our pasts, our choices, they are what make today—the day I get to marry the love of my life—so amazing.  
So with that, I promise to love you. In good times and bad, even when you drive me crazy, even when you think you hate me, even on the worst of days—I will love you. But not only you, I'll love your daughter. For the past she represents and the promise of the future. I love you both, the whole package. You two are the best thing to even happen to the Spencers. The present is a gift the past gives us, and you, Juliet, are my greatest gift."

She was vaguely aware there were tears streaming down her face, but she didn't care. She had never known she could love someone so much, never have imagined someone loving her so fully…and she was so glad she picked waterproof make-up.

"Shawn. There have been two times in my life where I felt utterly alone and completely terrified and in both of those moments, you rescued me. The first time you saved me from myself, from self-doubt and insecurity as I found myself in a new city without any clue what I was doing. You were a friend, a confidant, a partner. And then life happened and choices were made that put me in a darker place—a widow with a child and a painful history. But you found me and showed me that it was okay to live, to laugh, to be me. And this time, you didn't just save me, you saved my daughter—the most important piece of my life. You taught her what love can look like, what it means to be a family.  
And so today I promise to be just that, a family. I promise to love you with my whole heart, to love your daughter as my own, and to take two pasts and make a future. I've always loved you, Shawn, and I promise to never stop."

He was smiling at her, that tender yet irresistible smile and she felt whole for the first time. She looked at Gus, who wiped a tear from his eye and smiled at both of them—she had been amazed he'd kept it together this far. Then he said something that surprised her. "Now, as this is not just the joining of two people, but two families, Rachel and Rebecca would like to say something."

She looked first at Rachel, who smiled sheepishly, then turned to see Rebecca mimicking the expression. She watched as they came together and took back the bouquet from her daughter while Rachel pulled a sheet from the basket of flowers. She felt Shawn pull her close, as surprised as she was by their daughter's decision to speak, and they looked at their amazing little girls.

"Thanks Uncle Gus!" They said in unison, then they turned to face the small crowd.

Rachel spoke first, she tended to be the leader/instigator. "Hi everybody. Rebecca and I just wanted to say something before our Daddy and Mommy are married." Then little Rachel walked up and took her free hand. "Jules—Mommy. I love you. And not just because you braid my hair and play with me and let me call you 'mommy' now, but cause you make-ded my Daddy really happy.  
Sometimes when we'd play, his eyes would look really bright and he'd laugh real hard and I just was glad he was happy cause I think when my old mommy left it was hard and I'm not always good. But now his eyes are happy always and he laughs way more and I'm not even jealous cause I know he loves you different then me.  
I'm glad you're my mommy now cause you're nice and funny and you make yummy food. Plus you're a good mommy to Rebecca and now we get to be sisters and share you.  
I also am glad that Rebecca's my sister cause now we don't have to ask to have sleepovers and we can be best friends for always and I promise to share my toys and not get mad when you or Daddy pay attention to her." She nodded and smiled then handed Rebecca the sheet. Juliet looked at Shawn, amazed to see a tear running down his cheek, which she kissed as she squeezed his hand and Rachel's.

"Shawn—I mean, Daddy." Rebecca said and just hearing her call him 'Daddy' made her heart soar—it was a sound she'd always wanted to hear her child say to Shawn. "I love you too, for lots of the reasons Rachel loves Mommy, but I got some different ones too.  
I knew my old daddy, and even when he wasn't always nice or happy I loved him. But I love you more. My mommy has cried a lot, she tries not to let me see but I know. But since you, she's been crying cause she's happy instead of sad or scared and that makes me happy. You're a really great daddy cause you play princess and monsters and teatime and you make me feel special and loved and you make Mommy feel that way too.  
I told you when I met you I didn't want a daddy, but you showed me that daddies are good and I just wanted to say thanks and that I love you. Oh, and I promise to be nice and share with Rachel even if sometimes I don't want to cause she's a really great sister."

Juliet wiped a tear from her eye as she watched her baby girl hug her new daddy and her new sister. Then she felt Rachel pull on her bouquet and give her the wedding band to put on Shawn's finger. She did as Gus directed, then let Shawn slide the beautiful diamond ring on her finger.

* * *

"You may now kiss the bride." His best friend said with a smile and Shawn crashed into Juliet's lips. He felt his whole body fill with joy and happiness at the significance of the moment. After a moment, they broke apart and he looked down to see his little girls with their hands over their eyes. He smiled and picked up Rebecca, the newest love in his heart but by no means the smallest, watched as Jules picked up his—their—sweet Rachel, and held his perfect family close as he kissed his wife again, whole at last.

**So? Did you like? Should I put this on the back-burner as a new story (fill in the six months and maybe some future shots too). Review and let me know! **

**Also, can anyone tell me what "That was an abs" means? Cause I have no clue-review or PM please!**


	11. Chapter 11: The Next Adventure

**Due to the positive response, I will be turning Second Chances into its own story-probably not for a couple weeks, but I'll let you know :) I'm excited about that one. Anyway, I'm super stressed with school so I figured I'd write a quick, fluffy Shules. Also, everyone should go check out Back in the Game! (Maggie's new show). I haven't seen it, but it looks awesome! Anyway, this is not tied in to Second Chances...**

The Next Adventure

"Morning Mommy!" Juliet awoke to her two year old daughter pouncing on her stomach-the typical Saturday routine, but for some reason, today it made her feel sick.

"Ugh, morning Jaime..." She groaned, closing her eyes with hopes the nausea would go away. It didn't, however, and she had to push Jaime to the side while she ran for the toilet.

"Dad-dy! Mommy's sick!" She heard Jaime yell through the small house.

Within seconds, Shawn had arrived at the bathroom door and walked in. "Sweetie?" He said as he pulled her hair back. "You okay?"

"Yeah," she got up and went to rinse her mouth in the sink. "I just felt really sick after Jaime pounced on me, I feel a lot better now."

Shawn looked at her, eyes wide with concern, "Well I'm glad you're not working today. Cereal for you my darling bride-and not the sugary stuff, the grown-up cereal you make me eat." He kissed her head and walked out. "Starfish! You want a waffle? Mommy doesn't get any but you and I can have them with pineapple!"

"Yay! Is Mommy okay?" She asked-already at two she was the sweetest, most considerate person Juliet knew. She was Shawn's daughter through and through, dark wavy hair, easy smile, overall joy and excitement with life, but her eyes were surprising. They had been bright blue since she was born, like her own eyes, but right when she turned two they started to sometimes change. When little Jaime was especially happy, they flashed green-temporarily, but unmistakably.

"I'm okay baby-girl." She smiled as she ran a hand down her daughter's hair. She really did feel better, far better in fact. Really, she wanted a waffle with pineapple. "Shawn, make that three waffles, my stomach feels fine." He looked at her questioningly, but nodded and scooped extra waffle mix into the mixing bowl.

The waffles didn't take long to make, Juliet cut the pineapple while her husband watched the waffle maker and Jaime cooked a deluxe breakfast in her play kitchen. It had taken a while to adjust to having a baby, she and Shawn had some awful nights and days as they figured out schedules and responsibilities and just having a child overall, but as she looked at her happy family, Juliet smiled-her life was perfect.

"Breakfast is served, ladies!" Shawn exclaimed with enthusiasm and they all sat down around the table, Jaime crawling into her booster seat. "First, the Queen of the castle, the lovely Jules." He plopped a waffle on her plate and handed her the bowl of pineapple. "For the prettiest starfish of them all, Princess Jaime, I will cut your waffle into choke-free pieces! He plopped a waffle on the Perry plate he had pulled toward himself, then put another one on his own plate. "And one for King Shawn." Then-true to his word-he cut Jaime's waffle and the pineapple slices that accompanied it and slid it across the table to their daughter.

He was an amazing father, far better than she ever could have guessed. He was loving and fair, disciplining her when she needed it but never going too far and always explaining how much he loved her. He was the perfect father in fact, protective without hovering, tender but fun, everything a little girl could ask for. Juliet blinked rapidly, suddenly aware her eyes had welled up.

"Mommy? Are you crying?" Jaime asked, fork halfway to her mouth.

"No, just had a piece of pineapple caught in my throat." She saw Shawn's skeptical glance, but ignored it. "You know what this needs? Peanut butter." She said as she rose from the table and walked to the pantry.

"Ew! Gross! Mommy, no!"

"You don't know it's gross unless you try it!" She said, plopping a dollop of peanut butter on her pineapple covered waffle. She took a bite, much to her daughter's disgust, but it tasted wonderful. "Mmmm!" She said, bringing her face very close to her little one's.

"Jules, you know I'm all for pineapple experimentation, but that's a new one..." He seemed to be examining her, but after a second, he shook his head and said, "...give me a bite!" He reached over and cut off a piece of the waffle, then tried to cover how repulsed he was by the taste. "That's...interesting...I think I'll stick with this..." They finished their meal with a couple games of I-Spy, which Jaime could already beat her at-she definitely inherited her father's observational skills. Once they were done, Shawn started clearing the plates, "Okay Starfish, you know the drill, one episode of Phineas and Ferb then we're going to the park!"

"Yay!" Jaime dashed into the family room, leaving Shawn and Juliet alone in the kitchen.

"Babe, how are you feeling?" He asked cautiously.

"I feel fine, great actually! I guess Jaime just hit my stomach weird this morning."

"Mmhmm. Sweetie, do we have any pregnancy tests in the house?" He asked it so casually she did a double take to make sure she heard him correctly.

"Um, maybe-you don't think...Shawn I'm on the pill." She couldn't be pregnant, her last period was...when was it?

"97% effective, ask Lassie, he's got two of those three percent." It was true, both of Carlton's kids were accidents.

"But...I couldn't..." Still, she and Shawn walked to the bathroom, making sure Jaime was enthralled in her show. They found two tests under the sink, one was expired but only barely. She used both of them and they began the agonizing five minutes of waiting.

"Shawn, could we handle another baby?"

"Sweetie, if you're pregnant, of course we can handle it. Psych is doing well and you make plenty. We got this."

She was touched by his faith, and started tearing up again. Dang, she was so emotional, and hungry, and nauseous...shoot, she had to be pregnant. "I love you." She couldn't think of anything else to say and Shawn moved so he was sitting next to her on the tub with his arms wrapped around her.

"Mommy? Daddy? What are you doing on the tub? Why are you in the bafroom?" She smiled at her daughter's mispronunciation of the word, she loved being a mother so much, and having another one would be stressful but wonderful. "X, this is a x, right Daddy?" She had grabbed the stick from the counter without them realizing it and Shawn jumped up to take it from her.

"Close, Baby, it's a plus! So is this one! Jules!"Shawn's eyes were bright green and wide and she ran to look at the positive pregnancy tests with him. Plusses, both of them, she was pregnant. She looked up at Shawn, who planted a big kiss on her lips, killing all the fears and doubts about whether or not they could handle another.

"What does plus mean?" Jaime asked, tugging on Shawn's shirt.

"It means-" he started but she kissed him again to cut him off. Then she turned and picked up their perfect little girl.

"It means you can't jump on Mommy's stomach for a little bit, and that I might be eating some funny foods for a while. I'll tell you more when you're three, okay Baby-Girl?" She looked at her daughter's puzzled face. She'd be three in three months, they'd tell her then so they wouldn't have to explain it if anything terrible happened.

Jaime looked at her, then Shawn, then her again and eventually nodded. "Okay...but I wish I was three now." She and Shawn looked at each other and smiled, then each kissed a cheek of their sweet little girl. She giggled at their kiss and hugged them both tight, then pulled back suddenly. "Can we have a denture at the park?"

"Adventure, Starfish. Dentures are old people teeth, but yes, we can play save the Princess." Shawn said with a smile.

"Mermaid! I wanna be a mermaid!"

Juliet laughed, their next adventure had already started, their family was growing, and as she looked at the king and mermaid that would help her along this grand adventure, she couldn't help but think it would be a great one.

**Okay guys, you know the drill, let me know what you think! Hope you like the cuteness of the Spencer family!**


	12. Chapter 12: How it Could Have Ended 1

**Hello lovely people! I've thought about doing a one-shot like this for a while, and I plan on doing several throughout this collection, but let me know what you think and maybe give me ideas of other episodes you want to see!**

How It Could Have Ended 1:

"Jules! Take the shot!"

"I don't have it!"

"Take the shot!"

Lightning was flashing, leaves were flying, they were moving, she didn't have a clear shot-but she pulled the trigger.

And Shawn dropped.

Clive started laughing maniacally, the shot was more clear now and she chose a disabling shot to the leg. She had to get him down before she went to Shawn. Clive yelled as the bullet entered his thigh and she ran to Shawn with Gus-knocking Clive over as she did.

"Shawn! Shawn!" She yelled as she pulled him out of the water. He wasn't moving and it was too dark, she couldn't see where he was bleeding from.

"Shawn!" Gus said as he slapped him not-too-gently across the face, but still Shawn didn't move.

"I'm sorry!" She cried as she cradled his head in her lap. "I'm so sorry Shawn. Please, don't die. Please Shawn, I love you, don't die! Please don't die!"She sobbed as she held his head, feeling in vain for a pulse, and didn't even notice Gus get up and start pounding on Clive's face, though she vaguely heard him shouting that Clive killed his best friend. But Clive hadn't, she had. She never should've taken the shot, not till she knew she had it. Now the man she loved was dead and she'd waited too long to tell him. "Shawn..." She whispered, crying over his head, "please, come back. Please come back to me."

* * *

"Jules!"

She awoke covered in sweat with Shawn's face near hers and his arms on her shoulders-he must have shaken her awake. It was a dream. He was alive. "Shawn!" She cried as her eyes filled with tears and she wrapped her arms around his neck, unwittingly knocking him off balance causing him to fall into bed with her. "You're alive!" She looked him over, he was startled, but breathing, and that signature smile was playing across his lips.

* * *

He had been calling her all day, they had gotten back late, but he figured she should've been awake by 5 p.m. and he really wanted to bring her a 'thank you' pineapple. When she never answered, he got worried and drove to her place. When he saw her car was there, but she didn't open the door, he let himself in with the key he may-or-may-not have had permission to make and found her writhing in bed crying and whimpering asleep. He shook her awake and now he was lying next to her in bed as she hugged him and cried...and he had to admit, he didn't mind how this was playing out.

"Jules, not that I'm complaining, but why did you pull me in bed?" She let go of his neck and he saw that her eyes were red and tears were streaming down her face, he wiped them off and kept his hand on her face a second longer than he normally would've dared, but she didn't draw back.

"I never should've taken that shot. I almost hit you, you could've died, and I-I..." She was distraught and he pulled her closer again, so her head rested on his shoulder and his arms could wrap around her.

"Jules, you made the shot, and it was amazing." He felt something poking him in the stomach and shifted to pull the pineapple out from between them. "I brought you a pineapple to celebrate." She clung to him and continued to cry and he held her tight for a moment, relishing the feel of her against him but wishing she was a little happier. He shifted so she lifted her head and he wiped back the hair that was plastered to her cheek. "Jules, you were amazing, you saved me."

She sniffled and leaned her head into his hand. "It was a lucky shot. I was aiming for his shoulder. I could've killed you, that's what the dream was about, I missed and you...you..."

"Jules." He understood now. "Jules, you didn't miss, I told you to take the shot, I was a goner if you didn't take the shot. And you hit him, you saved me." He wiped the tears off her cheek again and her expression changed, her eyes softened but looked brighter all at once.

She pushed herself up, so she was sitting on the corner of the bed looking at him in her tank top and plaid pajama pants. "Shawn I love you. We risk our lives every time we go after a case and I'm sick of pretending like I don't love you, like it doesn't kill me a little bit every time I know you're chasing after a criminal and I'm not there with a gun. You're here, I needed you and you're here and I'm not going to take the chance that I'll miss the shot next time without telling you that I love you."

She loved him. He couldn't believe it. They had flirted, and she had shot him down a year before, but in that moment, he realized that he hadn't pushed harder because he wasn't willing to let this just be a fling. He stood up and pulled her off the bed, then ran his hand across her cheek and through her hair. "Jules, I love you. And admittedly I didn't realize it till you said it, but I do, I think I always have. You're the one person that I'd rather die than live without, the one person I want to impress, the one person who I look forward to seeing when I walk into the station. Every time I hear you got put on a dangerous case I die a little bit because I know you might not come back. Jules I love you and I'm never letting you go." He leaned in and kissed her, pulling her closer and holding on as tightly as he'd always wanted to. After a wonderful couple of moments, they broke for air. "Except maybe to split this pineapple with you, I'm starved."

She laughed, eyes bright and blue and free of tears. "I hear that." He kissed her again, lightly, and let her lead him to the kitchen, and thought 'Wednesday the 18th, best day ever.'

**Okay, let me know what you think and if you want to see more! Y'all are pretty great, keep reviewing! And I'll keep you updated on when Second Chances will be published!**


	13. Chapter 13

**So this one is kind of just adorable (imo) because I can. I hope you enjoy it!**

Shawn woke early, before Juliet even, which rarely happened. Savoring the sight of her sleeping he watched her for a second before sliding his hand under her arm and running it along her already growing belly. She hadn't started showing nearly this early with Jaime, but Shawn didn't mind, he loved that he could already see his next love growing. He nuzzled his head near hers and gently kissed her neck, relishing the feel of her spooned against him, the smell of her hair, the softness of her skin. She started to stir, she covered his hand in hers and interwove their fingers and rubbed his legs with hers.

"Good morning Wife." He whispered, voice still masked with sleepiness.

"Good morning Husband." She softly answered. They so rarely had mornings to themselves anymore, Jaime got up at the crack of dawn and even when she slept in there was usually something pulling them out the door. But today his little Starfish was at his dad's and they didn't have anywhere to be until noon. "You ready to see the baby?" She asked as she snuggled in closer to him.

"Come on, son. You know I am." She laughed at his deep impression voice and he rubbed her stomach. Today was their first ultrasound; they'd hear the heartbeat. He was so nervous when they did this the first time; Juliet had to drag him to every appointment, not because he didn't want to go, but because he was scared. But since Jaime was born and he experienced that overwhelming sense of joy he knew he wanted more. There were days when Jaime was a terror and he thought one was more than enough, but then she'd hop on his lap with her favorite bunny hanging out from under her arm and ask him to read her a story and all that changed. Jules and Jaime were his whole world, he couldn't imagine where he'd be without them, and he was so excited for his family to grow. "You've been thinking boy thoughts right? Football, baseball, cars, motorcycles, all that?" He loved having a little girl so, so much, but he didn't think he could take it if he had another. Jaime had him wrapped around her little finger and even now he had to hold back from threatening three-year-old Jackson Lassiter when he got too close. Another little girl might get him sent to prison. Plus, a boy would be fun.

"Yes, yes. Remember Sweetie, I want a boy too. I've even been burping in an attempt at masculinity."

He laughed and kissed his wife's neck again, she was about the worst burper there was. "I'm so proud Honey." They laid in bed for a while longer, talking about work and the new baby and Jaime and Shawn couldn't think of when he'd been this relaxed and happy. He missed Jaime, but it was nice to have a real conversation and nicer still to take a shower with his smokin'-hot wife. He then made her a weird craving breakfast—a waffle with syrup, ketchup, and cheerios, he didn't even try to sample this one—and made himself his Saturday special, waffle with pineapple. Then he held her in his arms while they watched Phineas and Ferb—Jaime was really just an excuse to watch it without judgment, and he knew Jules secretly loved the crazy summer antics and crime fighting platypus. After a lovely walk through the park and a few minutes swinging on the playground swings before kids showed up, they walked into the doctor's office.

"Shawn, I'm nervous. This pregnancy is already so different than with Jaime, what if there is something wrong?" He squeezed Juliet's hand tighter and kissed the side of her head.

"All pregnancies are different, Jules. You have nothing to worry about. Be excited, we get to see our baby today!" In reality, he had thought the same thing she just said two weeks prior and spent the night googling pregnancy differences and he still wasn't totally convinced but she needed to lean on him right now. He kept holding her hand as they signed in to the office and until they were called into the exam room. The ultrasound was first and Shawn was glad because he could barely take the anticipation. He was sure the baby was fine, but until he could see that little blob on the screen and hear the racing heart, he wasn't totally convinced.

The doctor came in and was pleasant enough, she asked a few questions and told them what he told Jules, that every pregnancy was different. Then she let him play with a little bit of the gel she rubbed all over Jules' belly. His wife cringed in the cold, but relaxed as the doctor put that funny little wand on.

"Okay, let's see here. Beautiful," then she flipped a switch and that racing heartbeat came out of the speakers, causing his own heart to jump for a second, it was an amazing sound. He kissed the top of Jules' head and smiled as he tried to make heads or tails of the blob on the screen. "Here's the head and here's the heart." The doctor said as she pointed. "And do you want to know the sex today?"

"What?" He said, unable to stop himself. They had opted out of knowing the sex with Jaime, but the doctor hadn't even offered until later in the pregnancy. "You know?"

"This happens to be a good angle, but if you don't want to know…"

He looked at Jules and she nodded and smiled, waiting had been tortuous for both of them the first time, it would be nice to know.

"Tell us!" He said, excited and nervous all at once.

"Well, this one's a boy. You can see right there…" She pointed at the screen and while Shawn still couldn't really tell what anything was, he trusted the doc and his heart soared at the thought of having an actual son to say 'Come on son' to.

"Wait, what do you mean, this one?" Jules said. He hadn't even caught that, but she was right, the doctor had said 'this one'.

"Well, if I move over here…" she danced the wand across his wife's belly and stopped close to the other side. "We should get another heartbeat. Congratulations, you're having twins!" He heard the second heartbeat, as fast and powerful as the first and suddenly felt faint. Two. Two babies. They had barely handled Jaime, now there would be two plus her.

"Jules…" He didn't know what to say.

"Shawn. Oh my, Shawn?" He heard his wife's squeal as he hit the ground.

"Mr. Spencer, are you alright?" The doctor's face came into focus in front of him.

"Mm, what? Yeah, I'm fine." He was more embarrassed at the fact he actually passed out. As he sat up and into the chair she showed him, he tried to play it cool. "Must've been bad pineapple. You said twins? Both boys?"

"Shawn, you passed out. Are you sure you're okay?" Juliet asked, her eyes were wide with concern and he really wished he had been a little more masculine in the moment.

"Jules, I'm fine. Great actually, I was just surprised. I love you Sweetheart." He reached for her hand and kissed it then turned back to the doctor expectantly. "Boys or one of each?" Honestly, at this point he didn't care as much, but he wanted to know and also to change the subject.

"I'm less sure about the second one, but I believe yes, both boys. Congratulations, I'll give you two some time."

"Or four." He mumbled and the doctor chuckled as she walked out the door. "Jules, your burping skills must be way better than I realized." She was still mopping the gel off her stomach but as he looked more closely he realized she was crying. "Jules, what? Why are you crying?"

"Twins. Twins, Shawn. I wasn't sure if we could handle one more and now we have two. I'm going to have to take time off work again, who knows how Psych will do. Plus Jaime turns three tomorrow, she's still home most of the time and it's a struggle to get her to nap, now there's going to be crying babies—babies Shawn, plural. And boys, what happens when they're Jaime's age, they'll destroy the house. The house…can we fit a family of five? What about the car? We'll need a minivan, will you drive a minivan—"

"Jules! Babe, breathe. Just breathe." He pulled her off the exam table and on to his lap. "It's just one more than we were expecting. This is good. And yes, I'll drive a minivan, as long as I get to pimp it out with pineapples and flames—or flaming pineapples!" She laughed and sniffled and he held her close. "There's that smile. Really Jules, it'll be fine. We'll figure it out, we always do. You and me? We're a team. If I can handle you and Jaime both having the flu while Gus was out of town and you can handle all of us—including Lassie and Gus—having colds without killing someone, we can handle our sons. Sweetheart, we're having sons, little boys to charm you just like their daddy." She laughed again and he began to stroke her growing belly. In actuality, he wasn't completely sold on what he was telling her, but he did know one thing to be true, he was in love with his wife and they could conquer anything together.

"You're sure we can do this?"

"Do you love me?"

"So very much."

"And Jaime?"

"Most definitely."

"Then yes. We're a family, we can do anything."

She snuggled into his arms and stroked his hand. "I hope they're more like me, I doubt I could handle all three of our kids being miniatures of their father."

He laughed and gently squeezed her. "Starfish has your eyes."

"For now…you know they're changing." He nodded, it was true, her eyes looked green more and more lately, much like his own did when he was her age.

"She's got your sweetness, none of that comes from me."

"Yes it does, look at you, you're sitting in an OB/GYN office holding me because I'm scared that we're having two more kids. When Jaime thinks I'm scared or overwhelmed she kneels on my lap with her arms around me—she is you."

He thought about it, she was right, that was the Jaime thing to do. But she was also somewhat wrong, "But I'm like this because of you. I love you Jules, you, our daughter, and our sons. You're everything I never knew I wanted."

"You're better than my best dreams." She softly replied, leaning against him.

He had an amazing wife, a wonderful daughter, and two sons on the way. It wasn't the life he ever would have picked for himself, but there in the doctor's office as he held Juliet close he knew he wouldn't have it any other way.


	14. Chapter 14

**Guys! Second Chances is officially out! There's only one additional chapter so far, but I figured I'd let y'all know! Anyway, this one is pre-dating, nowhere specific on the timeline. And I'm not crazy about the ending, but I couldn't think of a better concluding sentence, so, yeah...**

"

Shawn, you're going to get yourself shot someday…" He had been lucky she and Carlton showed up when they did—Shawn was about three seconds away from leaving the case in a body bag.

"And you know you'd rush to the hospital if I did." He replied with a cocky smile and a wink.

"I'd probably just be annoyed at all the extra paperwork I'd have to do." She replied with a smirk, secretly hoping she'd never have to prove him right.

_Three weeks later_

"O'Hara, can you come in my office for a moment?"

"Sure Chief." Juliet was wary as she entered, the chief didn't sound cheerful or even business-like, but concerned. "What's up?"

"Have a seat." Juliet sat in the seat gestured to by Karen and started wringing her hands. "Juliet, we just received a call from a witness saying a white guy and a black guy went into a warehouse and shots were fired shortly after, followed by several different men fleeing the scene. I've already sent an ambulance but I'd like for you to go investigate, Lassiter is out on another case, can you go alone or would you like back up?"

Juliet just looked at the chief, trying to stay out of the pit of worry and despair she was at the edge of. "I'll be fine. Thanks Chief." She rose without another word and left, walking to her car on autopilot—then, realizing she had no idea where to go, she radioed for a location. As she thought, it was the warehouse they had suspected the money-laundering business had been but couldn't get a warrant for. They hadn't even told Shawn about it—how had he known? And if he knew about the place, why didn't he realize how dangerous it would be? She hit Shawn's name off her favorites list and tried to keep the panic at bay as it rang.

One ring. Agonizing wait.

Two rings. He had to be okay.

Three rings. He couldn't be hurt—not really.

"Juliet! Call an ambulance—Shawn's down!" Gus must have picked up Shawn's phone.

Shawn was down, what did that mean? Was he dead? Unconscious? Just wounded?

"Already on the way, I'll be there soon. Gus?"

"Just hurry."

The line went dead and Juliet fired up her car, she couldn't even think, couldn't let herself feel. She had to get to Shawn. She arrived just as the ambulance left with Shawn and Gus riding along. She had to force herself to at least look around the scene, begin an investigation, but all she saw was the small pool of blood. Shawn's blood. She was halfway to her car when she forced herself to turn around, there was nothing she could do for him right now, except solve this case. She looked more thoroughly, found a couple spots that looked like they might have usable finger prints and marked them for Crime Scene, then she waited until they arrived and filled them in before driving like mad to the hospital. She had gotten a text from Gus saying Shawn was in surgery.

She sat in the waiting room with Gus and Henry and interviewed Gus—doing anything to keep her mind off the fact Shawn was in surgery. They had been looking in to the money-laundering case—Shawn had had a 'vision' that led them to the warehouse and they were snooping around when three of hired hands came bursting out of a back room. Of course, Shawn was all smart-alec-y, but this time she wasn't there to burst in with a gun and save him. She sat in the waiting room with her head in her hands, even after the nurse came in and said he was in post-op. She couldn't move. Gus and Henry did essentially the same, no one moved, no one talked, they all just thought about how much Shawn actually meant to them.

After a while, a nurse came in to the waiting room. "Is there a Detective O'Hara here?" She asked.

"That's me!" She said as she jumped out of her seat.

"Mr. Spencer said if you were here he'd like to see you. Follow me please."

She followed the nurse, confused as to why Shawn wanted to see her before Gus when she remembered their conversation from three weeks before. She made a last ditch effort to appear as though she hadn't just been crying into her hands, but knew he'd see right through it. As they reached the room, the nurse stopped by the door and smiled, gesturing her in.

"I'm not going to say I told you so. But I told you so." Shawn's shoulder was bandaged, but he was smiling like a fool. She just wiped her eyes again in response. "Come here, I have to tell you something." He scootched over on his bed, making room for her to sit on it, but she opted for the chair instead. "I got shot, Jules."

"I know, Shawn."

"No, listen." He grinned as he reached for her hand, which she let him take. "I got shot by Cupid—no, really!" He said as she scoffed. "He was bald with a baby face and shot me with a crossbow, ask Gus! I got shot by Cupid, and you were here when I woke up."

"Shawn, did you purposefully get yourself shot by a bald guy with a crossbow just to get me here crying?"

He put his hand to his mouth in mock horror. "Why Juliet! I would never do such a thing!" Then he winked as he put his hand down. "But really, I didn't intend on getting shot, it was not at all as awesome as the movies make it seem. Still…getting shot by Cupid and having you come all teary eyed does make the pain more bearable."

She laughed and wiped another tear from her eye. "Well I'm glad I can be a pain killer."

"You know what else is a good pain killer? Morphine. Also, banana pudding." He handed her a pudding cup.

"Ha, 'Spell banana', you know that was our first case together, right?"

"Actually, technically, Detective, our first case was at the diner. I made another straw snake that you can finish if you feel up to it." He pushed the table toward her with the crumpled straw snake placed next to his orange juice.

"Shawn, are you recreating old memories to woo me?" She wasn't sure why she was flirting back, but she realized it was pointless to fight it anymore.

"Depends, how am I doing?"

"I haven't told you to stop yet…" She moved the chair a little closer to him.

He pulled on her hand, yanking her out of the chair and onto the bed. "Then how about this. A little truth time." She adjusted so she was leaning against him. "When I was standing there, about to get shot, I realized how much I need you. And then I got shot, and as I was trying not to cry from the blinding pain, I realized you were the only person I wanted to see before I died a valiant death." At this she rotated so she could look at him, and was surprised to see he was completely serious. "Jules, you're everything to me, and it's stupid to pretend like there's not something there because there clearly is—look at us, I'm shot and you're here. So, what does that mean?"

She was stunned, amazed at his honesty and how much what he was saying meant to her. "Shawn, when I found out you were shot, I felt the world drop out from under me. I couldn't admit to it three weeks ago, I was hoping I'd never have to, but you're the one person that I can't imagine living without." He smiled, not his typical cocky smile, but his genuine, heart-warming, world-changing smile.

"Jules, I am currently hospitalized, so I'm a little limited in the options here, but would you like to eat hospital food with me tonight? I can bring in those funny flickering electric lights since they won't let me have candles due to the whole explosion risk or something, or if you prefer we can just have those weird stick incense things, or"

"Shawn." She said through her smile as she interrupted him. "I'd love to have hospital food with you." Then she gave him a light peck on the cheek and shoved a spoonful of banana pudding in his mouth.

"A delicious pudding, but I'm looking for something a little sweeter." Then he pulled her close and gave her a passionate, banana-y kiss on the lips.

**Like I said, not the best of endings, but I don't think it's terrible! Anyway, enjoy and read and review and then go check out Second Chances! (Yes, there are three ands in that sentence :) )**


	15. Chapter 15

**Sorry it's been a while guys! I've been busy...like ridiculously so. Anyway, this idea has been floating around in my head for a while, and while it's not that happiest introduction to the twins, I think it's pretty good. Also, I've been having serious difficulties coming up with chapter names, so if you guys think of any, let me know! Also, just review in general, on any chapter, even if it's your first time reading this and you think it would be weird to go back and comment on, like, chapter 1-it's not weird, you should do it :)**

_"You know what? Screw you! I'm out, I don't have to take this."_

_"Shawn Spencer, get back here! You do not get to leave before we're done talking about this! Shawn!"_

* * *

Seven-year-old Jaime watched her father storm out the front door through a her cracked door with tears streaming down her face. She was supposed to be asleep, but her parents had started a whispered argument just outside her room that had woken her up and now she didn't know what to do. She heard her mom say a couple bad words, then slammed the door to their room and Jaime ran to her window to see her dad start walking down the street. Double checking that the coast was clear, she quietly opened her door, then snuck into her brother's room. The twins had gotten bunk beds for their fourth birthday, Hank, Henry Gus, had won the top bunk on a coin toss but every time she checked Mark, Marcus Ewan, had climbed up there with him. She stepped on the lower bunk and held on to the safety rail, putting her face just about the same level as theirs.

"Hank, Mark" she whispered. Hank was sucking his thumb, as usual. He looked more like her, with dark hair, but his eyes hadn't changed to greenish blue like hers had, they stayed bright blue like their mom's. Mark on the other hand had their mom's hair-gold and silky-but his eyes were green with a gold burst around the pupil just like their dad's. "Guys, wake up!" She whispered slightly louder. Their room shared a wall with her parents', and she could hear her mom crying through it.

"Jai Jai?" Mark said as he wiped the sleep out of his eyes. "Did you have bad dream?"She had just learned about conjunctions in school, and her brother's refusal to use them was starting to bug her.

"_A_ bad dream Bubba, and no-but I need you two to say you did." Hank had woken now too and was looking at her with a dazed expression. He didn't say much, and he didn't look at people in the eyes unless they were family-Mom and Dad said he had something called Asperger's, but when you got to know him he was wicked smart and really funny.

"No lying." Hank said, he _always_ followed the rules and 'no lying' was one of them.

"Hank, please, Mommy is sad and I know she'd feel better if you'd cuddle with her." She looked to Mark for help, usually they could get Hank to do something if they worked together.

"I did have bad dream." He said, and she glared at him for his lack of 'a', but decided not to comment because he was helping. "Let's go." And just like that, Hank nodded and the two of them crawled down the ladder and padded toward the door.

"Sissy coming?" Hank asked as he was about to leave.

"No Buddy, I'm going to find Daddy. But you can't tell Mommy, promise?" She held out her pinky and he shook it with his own-an unbreakable promise between them.

She waited a moment in the boys room, listening to the wall to hear if Mommy bought the story, which she seemed too, she didn't hear crying and she heard both the boys distinct laughs-Hank's was more of a giggle and Mark's was almost a bark-which was typical with post-nightmare tickle sessions. She ran back to her room and closed the door, then made a fake body under her sheets with a pillow and stuffed animals-just in case Mommy checked. Then she grabbed a sweatshirt and jimmied open her window, careful not to make a sound as she crawled out and stood on her secret window rock so she was tall enough to close it again. Then she started walking down the street the way she had seen her dad go, but she didn't see him anywhere. "Daddy!" she whispered as loud as she could-even in busy crowds she could do that and he would come running back to her. "Daddy!" She tried again, but nothing. She ran to the edge of the street, as far as she was allowed to go in their neighborhood, but she still didn't see him. "Dad-dy!" She tried one more time, actually calling out instead of just whispering, but still he didn't come running with a big goofy smile, she was alone.

She walked back to their house and sat on the front stoop. It was a risk that she'd get in trouble, but knew her dad wouldn't yell at her and she was determined to stay awake till he came back. But sitting on the hard concrete started to hurt...so she laid down on the mat. And then she got really tired, but she tried to keep her eyes open, but it got harder and harder...and...har..der...

* * *

Jaime woke to the sound of her mommy's scream and panicked. She had fallen asleep outside and her mom must have found the fake in her bed. Which meant her daddy had never come home...

Still, Mommy sounded mad and she didn't want to get in trouble, so she ran behind the bushes by her window-her secret spot with Hank that not even Mark knew about.

"Jaime! Where are you?" She heard her mom call but she stayed silent, she didn't know what to do. "Hank, Mark, do you know where she is?"

"No Mommy" she heard them chime in unison.

"If you know, you better tell me...boys..." Her mom was using her serious voice, the one where it was make-it-or-break-it as far as getting in trouble.

"Where's Daddy?" Hank asked and she smiled. It was his way of telling their mom where she was without breaking his promise to her. Sneaky, but smart.

"I-I don't know Sweetie, I'll call him." Her mommy sounded more scared now than angry, but she still didn't want to risk getting in trouble. They must have left her room to call her dad, because she couldn't hear anything they said anymore, so she just sat with her arms wrapped around her knees and waited-hopefully Hank would bring her some food or something, she could probably live out there forever and be okay.

* * *

She was starting to get really bored outside, she should've brought some toys or something. And Hank hadn't checked on her, so she was getting pretty hungry, she even thought about eating a leaf. Suddenly she heard a car pull up in their driveway, but as she peeked through the branches, she knew it wasn't their car. But her daddy stepped out of it and walked right past her spot and into the house. She heard her mom and dad start yelling. "Wait for iiiiiiit..." she mumbled just as Hank's high-pitched meltdown screech filled the house. She wanted to go in and help calm him down, she was good at it, but she was still worried she'd get in trouble while everyone was so mad. It took a couple minutes for them to get him settled, and then a couple minutes after that she heard the front door slowly open. She stayed very still, even holding her breath, but her daddy found her easily and with precision.

* * *

"Hello Starfish." He said as he crawled toward his baby girl, who was tightly hugging her legs in the exact spot his little man Hank had said she'd be. Apparently it was their secret place, but Hank had told him where it was because Jaime had been looking for him. "What'cha doin' out here?"

"You didn't come home last night." The words pierced his heart, the sadness in the tone making him feel foolish for his actions last night.

"I-we're you out here all night?" He reached out to hug her but she shook him off.

"Are you and Mommy getting a divorce?" She asked the question as tears betrayed her eyes, he knew she hated crying, particularly in front of him for whatever reason and he pulled her into his arms and held her tight despite her fighting back.

"No Jaime. Never."

In the strength of his-her daddy's-arms, he felt Jaime let herself cry. "Bu-uut, but you two fight _all the time_. A-and yo-ou don-do-don't say 'I love you' since Hank started having meltdowns."

He felt the bottom drop out of his heart. It was true, since the twins turned two and Hank started showing signs of Aspergers, then more-so since the diagnosis, he and Juliet had been tearing themselves apart. "Starfish, I love your mom so very much." He did, more than he could say. "I'm sorry we've been fighting so much, but you have to know that we love you and Mark and Hank more than anything and nothing could ever change that."

"He doesn't mean to." He could tell she was still crying, but she wasn't sobbing as hard anymore. "Hank, he tries to be good, and Mark and I try to keep him calm. And I told Mark he can't hit people for making fun of him. And I'm sorry if I'm not good and I yell at them, but sometimes they're so annoying and I-"

"Jaime, Starfish, stop." She was breaking his heart more with every word. "It's not you or the boys. I-I don't really know what it is, but I promise I'll figure it out. I _love_ your mommy, and that hasn't stopped nor will it ever stop. It was stupid of me to not come home last night, I should've stayed so we could talk, but I was frustrated and before your mommy I was never good at commitment, there was never anything I was willing to fight for, but now there is." He moved so he could look into her blue-green eyes, a perfect mix of his and Jules', and hoped she understood. At the same time, she had been his wake up call that something had to change with the way he treated his wife. "Come on, let's go tell Mommy you're all right and then I'm going to talk to her-and even if we yell, I _promise_ you, Starfish, we're not going to get divorced. Okay?"

She just nodded and the two of them crawled out of the bushes and walked into the house. In no time, Juliet had run to the door and enveloped little Jaime in her arms, kissing every part of his Starfish she could reach. "Jaime, I'm so glad you're home Sweetie. But don't you _ever_ do that again...What we're you thinking?" She was ramping up and he knew he had to stop her.

"Jaime, go to your room-or actually, go into the twins', okay? Keep them busy." Jaime nodded and walked into the twins room as Juliet turned on him.

"You're letting her go? We need to talk to her-punish her probably. Shawn, she ran away." There was fire in her eyes but even through the anger he was amazed at how remarkably beautiful she was. Jaime had reminded him of what he had, of what he was losing, and he realized that he'd been fighting the wrong fight for years now. Instead of fighting against his wife, he needed to be fighting _for_ her.

"Jules." He grabbed her hands. "I love you. And I'm sorry that I haven't been saying that enough, or showing it enough even, because I do. You mean everything to me, you're my wife, the mother to my amazing children, and my whole world. I know things have been hard lately with Hank and finances and everything-but Sweetheart, why aren't we fighting these battles together? When you got pregnant with the twins, I told you we could get through anything if we did it together, and I still believe that, but I got lost along the way somewhere. Probably around the time Hank got diagnosed. But can you forgive me? And if you can't right now, that's okay, I'm willing to fight for you, fight for our beautiful daughter and our brilliant and amazing sons, because without you, I have nothing. But fighting for you and along side you, Jules, it's is all I'm willing to do anymore, because fighting against you is killing me-ripping out my heart, tearing apart my soul killing me. And I know it's going to be difficult, and we'll have rough days, and that sometimes we will fight, but let's always make up right away, because I don't want to storm out of the house like a child ever again-in fact, I promise I won't, because I love you." He hadn't been able to look her in the eye until that last 'I love you' and when he did, he was surprised to see tears streaming down her softened face. No longer was there the fire of anger behind her eyes, but the passion, the love that they had before, that he hadn't seen in a while and he just realized he desperately missed.

"I love you, Shawn." She said as she wrapped her arms around his core, holding him tight even as he felt her knees give way. He put his arms around her and sunk to the floor with her, holding her tight as she allowed herself to let go. "I'm so tired of fighting. Of trying to deal with this without you, against you. I'm so sorry. I love you. I've always loved you." He kept holding her tight, tighter than he had in years and he tried to blink away the tears in his eyes. He'd almost lost her. It had taken his beloved daughter going missing for him to realize what he'd almost thrown away.

"Jules, will you re-marry me?" The words escaped his lips even before he realized he'd thought them.

"What?" She pulled back slightly so she could see him and he was amazed at how brightly her eyes shone.

"Like in the backyard or at the beach, a couple friends and family over, a renewal of our vows or whatever." He wiped the tears off her cheek as he figured out what he was saying, what he wanted. "The past couple years, I've not been living out those vows, and I just want to remind you of how much you mean to me-plus it's our tenth anniversary." He looked to her for confirmation of that, he was really terrible at anniversaries and ages, but she smiled and nodded. "I just, I want to start this marriage over, make it what we had always wanted it to be."

"Shawn, you are the most amazing, thoughtful, wonderful man I've ever known-yes, I'll re-marry you." She smiled and he leaned in to kiss her, and as he did, he felt the spark that had first scared him so much, followed by the warmth throughout his body that told him he was complete.

* * *

Seven-year-old Jaime watched her father kiss her mother through a cracked door with tears streaming down her eyes and a hand on each brother's shoulder, knowing love was stronger than anything that stood against them.

_**Okay, so do you ever start writing something, then as you're writing it kind of transforms into something else and it's better than you expected? Maybe you don't, but that's what just happened. My idea was Jaime waits outside for Shawn after he and Juliet get in a fight and he assures her they're not getting a divorce, but this-this turned out better. Hopefully you like it! Read and review!**_


	16. Chapter 16: Two Weeks

Two Weeks

"Spe—Shawn, you need to get down to the hospital right away." Shawn's heart dropped out of the bottom of his chest when he heard Lassie's tone. He didn't say a word. He wasn't even sure if he hung up the phone. He just grabbed the keys and ran out the door.

People would probably argue that it wasn't possible to go from his office to the hospital that fast, but he'd done it, mind solely focused on reaching his destination as fast as possible. He threw the car in park and sprinted through the front doors of the hospital to find Lassie and the Chief pacing and looking concerned.

Before they could say anything, a nurse walked out, her face blank. "Who is here for the detective?" He raised his hand, as did Lassie and the Chief, and stepped toward the small nurse. As he got closer, he could see the terrible truth in her eyes. "I'm so sorry. We did everything we could, it was just—"

He didn't wait for the end of the sentence. He couldn't hear it. He felt his heart breaking in his chest.

He stumbled out of the hospital, deaf to Lassiter and Vick's calls, blind to anything but grief.

She was gone.

He didn't remember getting into his car and driving home. It was like he had transported from the hospital parking lot to his front door, and now he was fumbling with the lock, trying to see through tear filled eyes. He finally got the key in, turned the lock, opened the door, walked inside, and fell into the door to close it, turning the deadbolt as he slid to the floor.

Two weeks. Two blissful weeks they'd been married, and now she was gone. Her first case after their honeymoon. He'd taken her on a Mediterranean Cruise. It had been a secret. She was so surprised, so happy. They'd gotten back yesterday, tanner and more in love than ever before. He'd woken up with her, his wife, in his arms that morning. She had smiled and kissed him as he tried to convince her to stay in bed all day. She had kissed him as she walked out the door, whispered 'I love you' in his ear. That was the last thing he'd hear her say. The last time he would kiss her. The last time he would feel her, smell her, see her.

Two weeks and she was gone.

He felt like he was going to explode, like his heart was actually tearing itself in two, like he had died.

Why her? Why not him? He couldn't handle this. Couldn't live without her now that she'd been his.

And he'd been hers. How was he to go on without his other half. His better half. His love.

He was blind with tears but he hadn't let out a cry yet. It was building within him, tearing him apart, but he couldn't let it out. If he cried she was really gone. If he cried, she wouldn't be coming home, wouldn't eat dinner with him, wouldn't fall asleep in his arms. If he cried, she was dead.

He felt the knocking on the door as much as he heard it.

"Shawn."

It was Gus. Why had Gus come?

"Shawn, open up."

If Gus was here, it meant she was really gone, he hadn't just imagined it.

"Shawn, open this door."

He heard him try to unlock it, but the top deadbolt was only accessible from the inside—a precaution she had taken.

"Shawn, say something. You don't have to let me in right now, but I need to hear you say something."

He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came, the uncried-cry was stuck in his throat, blocking all other sounds.

"Shawn, don't make me break in."

He opened his mouth again, but still nothing came out. A moment later, he heard breaking glass in the living room, but he didn't care. He couldn't move. Couldn't feel anything, even his legs.

"Shawn…"

He wiped his eyes so he could see Gus, his best friend, see the truth in his eyes. Gus wouldn't lie. He'd be smiling. This was all a joke, a sick, twisted wedding present. But when he looked into Gus' eyes, all he saw was sorrow and fear. He shook his head. It couldn't be real.

"Shawn, Lassie called me…I…"

He closed his eyes, buried his head in his arms. This couldn't be happening. He felt Gus sit next to him, place a hand on his arm.

"I'm just going to sit here. I'll just sit with you til you're ready to move."

The cry escaped. More of a scream that stemmed from his very core before breaking down into sobs. She was gone. She was dead. This was real. His wife was dead. He vaguely heard Gus next to him, not sympathetic crying, but empathetic. Sharing in his pain. In his sorrow.

They sobbed together against that dead bolted door until there were no more tears.

Then they were quiet. He couldn't think. Couldn't move. He felt numb. A zombie walking amongst men. And Gus sat with him. He knew his friend wanted to ask him something, he even suspected what that was, but for now, he was glad for the quiet.

The house was dark. He didn't know how long he'd been sitting there and he didn't care. Suddenly, Gus' phone broke the silence like shattering glass. He silenced it, but Shawn knew what he had to do. He stood up, unbolted the door, and followed Gus into the Blueberry.

They rode in silence, there were no words to say. Gus stopped at a red light and as Shawn looked out the window, he saw her. It had to be her. He had to get to her, to prove that she wasn't gone. He unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door. She was just across the street. He tried to call out to her, but his voice was gone. He'd have to go to her.

"Shawn! What are you doing?"

He was getting her, what did it look like.

"Shawn, there's traffic, get back in the car!"

He had to get to her before she disappeared.

"Shawn! Watch out!"

He turned and the light from the headlights was blinding.

_"Shawn!"_

* * *

He opened his eyes and her face filled his field of vision. "Jules!" He grabbed her face and pulled it towards his, kissing her lips, her cheeks, her nose, everything.

After a moment, she pulled back. "Shawn. Are you okay? You were writhing and moaning in your sleep, it took me yelling your name to wake you up. Bad dream?"

"Don't go in to work today."

She smiled and kissed him lightly on the lips. "Sweetheart, I took two weeks off for the honeymoon, I have to go back."

He pulled her close, holding her in his arms and relishing the feel of her, the smell of her, the sight of her. "Not today. You can go back tomorrow. Not today." He kissed the top of her head and she laid there for a while, rubbing her thumb back and forth against his side as he ran his hand up and down her back.

After a moment, she shifted so she could look at him, and he saw her eyes fill with concern as she wiped the tears he hadn't realized he'd been crying off his face. "Okay, Shawn. Not today. My phone's right here, I'll say I have jet-lag. Carlton will understand. We can stay right here today." He watched her as she sat up to make the call. Lassie didn't sound overly-pleased, he looked at the clock and saw it was still the middle of the night, but she thanked him as she ended the call. "Okay, Babe. I'm off. You want to talk about it?" She said as she laid back down, her head on his chest, her arm around him, her leg slipping between his.

"Jules. I love you. More than Gus, more than _me_, I love you."

"I love you too, Shawn. Now I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere. At least not today. Get some sleep."

He held her close as he drifted back to sleep, occasionally waking with a start thinking she was gone again, but she was there. In his arms. Alive.

...

The sun was streaming in through the half-closed blinds as he woke, Juliet still asleep in his arms. He ran his hand through her hair. She shifted and groaned as she woke up, smiling as she opened her eyes.

"Good morning, Wife."

She smiled wider and gave him a light kiss on the lips as she looked at the clock. "Good afternoon, Husband. What do you say we just stay in bed today."

"I'd like that, I love you very much."

"I love you too, Shawn."

Two weeks. Two blissful weeks they'd been married and now she was here in his arms. It was the antithesis of his nightmare and better than even his best dream.

**So I was going to make this a tragedy and have it end at the break…but I couldn't do it. I'm not a tragedy writer…anyway, let me know what you think of this one! Hopefully no one stopped reading halfway through…but read and review! Seriously, it makes things so much better :)**


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